"I won. Rest in peace, Orc Disaster Geld."
Rimuru's voice echoed through the battlefield.
For a moment, there was absolute silence.
Then, cheers erupted from the goblins and lizardmen. Cries of grief rose from the Orc ranks. With those words, the Orcs' invasion finally came to an end.
"Well done, Rimuru."
Emiya Shirou arrived from the distance, his clothes still stained with blood, and smiled as he spoke.
"Shirou, you're back?"
Rimuru looked at him and returned a small smile. Then his expression turned heavy.
"Shirou," he said, "I want to devour the Orcs' sins."
"I see."
Emiya Shirou paused for a moment, then stepped forward. He placed a hand on Rimuru's shoulder and spoke calmly.
"Then do it."
"I'll stand behind you."
"I'll support you completely."
"...Thank you, Shirou."
Hearing that, Rimuru finally relaxed and smiled in relief.
"Then we should prepare," Emiya Shirou said. "We'll convene a meeting and announce your decision."
He turned his head toward Treyni, who had followed him over.
"Can I leave the arrangements to you?"
"Of course," Treyni replied with a gentle smile. "Please leave it to me, Lord Emiya."
She offered no resistance at all.
Treyni understood very clearly who held true authority in the Great Forest of Jura now. Neither Emiya Shirou nor Rimuru was someone she could oppose. More importantly, the two stood firmly together.
Faced with their request, agreement was her only option.
The day after the Orc Disaster was defeated.
In the center of the wetlands, Treyni erected a large tent. Representatives of the various races gathered there one after another.
On Rimuru's side, the representatives were naturally Rimuru himself and Emiya Shirou.
Benimaru, Shion, Hakurou, and Souei were also present.
Ranga, as always, hid within Rimuru's shadow.
As the leaders who had defeated the Orc Disaster faction, Emiya Shirou and Rimuru sat at the center of the tent. The others took their seats along the sides.
Rimuru did not appear in human form.
Instead, he remained in his slime body, resting on Emiya Shirou's shoulder.
According to him, since he had already revealed his true form when defeating the Orc Disaster Geld, there was no point in hiding it now.
Among the other races, Treyni attended on behalf of the Tree Dryads, whose main bodies could not move.
The Lizardmen were represented by their chief, the Captain of the Royal Guards, and the Vice-Captain.
Gabiru had been arrested for rebellion and was currently imprisoned. Even though he was the chief's son, an example had to be made.
While Gabiru was undeniably foolish, he also possessed a strange charm. Rimuru had already heard about his situation and felt the urge to speak up for him. But given the atmosphere of the meeting, interfering in another race's internal affairs was clearly inappropriate.
The chiefs of the various Goblin tribes were also present.
However, surrounded by so many high-ranking races, they shrank into the back seats, their bodies tense. To them, the beings gathered here were terrifying existences.
As for the Orcs-
They sent their only surviving Orc General.
Along with him came the representatives of the Orc tribal union: ten tribal chiefs.
All of them looked haggard.
Their heads were lowered. Their expressions were bleak.
They were not only the instigators of this conflict, but also victims of it.
Another, even harsher reality weighed on them.
Food.
The Orcs' supplies were nearly exhausted.
According to Souei's investigation, the Orc army had prepared very little in the way of provisions. Even the Orc Disaster Geld's "Stomach" skill did not contain stored food.
In other words, they truly had nothing left to eat.
Under the influence of Geld's Unique Skill, the Orcs could continue marching even while starving. They could even resort to cannibalism.
But now that the skill's influence was gone, they would never eat their own kind.
Some Orcs had already collapsed from malnutrition.
Despair was closing in on them.
Holding them accountable for war reparations was meaningless. The Orcs simply had nothing left to give.
What made the situation even more cruel was that, despite their losses, they still numbered around one hundred thousand soldiers.
The remaining food supply could not possibly support that many mouths.
They had troops, but no strength to fight.
This alone showed how desperate the Orcs truly were.
Without the Unique Skill "Starved One," they would have already died of hunger.
From Geld's memories, Rimuru had learned the truth.
The Demon Continent was a fertile land.
It was protected by Demon Lords and, on the surface, appeared safe.
Even when powerful monsters or demonic beasts caused trouble, the Demon Lords' subordinates would step in to maintain order.
But there was a price.
Heavy taxes.
To live on that fertile land, one had to hand over vast amounts of agricultural produce.
The Orcs, with their high fertility and strong physiques, were perfect labor. They worked mines. They cultivated fields. They were essential to the Demon Lords.
But that did not mean safety was guaranteed.
Those who failed to pay their taxes were simply abandoned.
The Demon Lords would not personally intervene.
The Demon Continent itself was dangerous. Monsters prowled everywhere, drawn by its rich resources. The Demon Lords did not protect those who failed to pay from such threats.
As a result, it was a brutal land.
For the Orcs, this meant that even if more than half of them died, their population could quickly recover. When numbers grew too large, excess Orcs were simply culled.
Then came the great famine.
They could no longer meet the required taxes.
Survival became impossible.
With no other choice, the Orcs fled in search of food and refuge. They arrived at the outskirts of the Great Forest of Jura.
The Orc Disaster was born during this famine.
But at that time, he was powerless. He could not fight monsters. He could not save his people.
That was when Gelmud approached them.
No one knew Gelmud's true intentions.
But when a hand was extended to them in desperation, they grasped it.
With Gelmud's backing, the Orcs launched this invasion.
That was the whole story.
"How pitiful."
Emiya Shirou felt no regret.
In the previous battles, roughly fifty thousand Orc soldiers had died by his hand.
He knew this clearly.
In the original course of events, one hundred fifty thousand Orcs survived. Now, only one hundred thousand remained.
Those fifty thousand deaths were his doing.
But this was war.
The atmosphere in the tent was heavy as the meeting formally began.
Rimuru spoke first.
He told everyone what he had seen in Geld's memories. He explained the Orcs' circumstances in detail.
The Orc representatives had not expected this.
As they listened, tears streamed down their faces.
After that, each race reported their own losses.
The numbers were sobering.
In response, the Orc representatives bowed deeply. They said they were willing to compensate, but since they had nothing left, they were prepared to offer their lives instead.
At that, all eyes turned toward Rimuru.
And Emiya Shirou.
After all, the one who defeated the Orc Disaster was Rimuru.
Feeling the weight of those gazes, Rimuru paused.
Then he spoke.
"First," he said, "I want to make my position clear."
"I have no intention of holding the Orcs accountable."
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