6

Chapter 6: Catastrophe Comes CallingSummary:

The Jura Tempest Alliance officially becomes the Jura Tempest Federation. Tempest is growing at a rapid pace, and it's not just Tanya who's noticed. Enter, stage left: Milim the Destroyer! And hey, where's Rimuru?!

Notes:

Longer chapter this time, like 7.5k words... by the way, do you guys like fight scenes? Cause this chapter has fight scenes!

Enjoy!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Tanya von Degurechaff.

The single most confusing person I've ever had the displeasure of meeting. Just what is her fucking deal? And naturally, I have to deal with her on a daily basis.

Oh, if my father could see me now, what would he think? But then again… would he even care? After all, he's the one who went after-

Damn it!

My head is all scrambled in knots, yet it's somehow never been clearer. Nothing about this makes sense! What am I supposed to do? After years of "knowing" exactly what to expect, I just feel… lost.

My Lord God, were you lying to me this whole time?

Who is Tanya von Degurechaff?

I have to know. For my own peace of mind.

-=-

Afternoon

Assembly Hall

Tempest, Jura Tempest Alliance

As it turns out, the King of the Armed Nation of Dwargon was a real nice guy once you weren't on the other end of his blade.

"This wine is very well made. You'd be willing to trade with this, right?" Gazel leaned forward, holding out his half-empty wine glass.

"You want to trade with us?" Rimuru blinked, "Isn't that a bit fast?"

Gazel nodded gratefully as Shuna refilled his glass.

"When the product is good, speed is of no concern. In either direction Besides, establishing this sort of thing early on will only benefit Dwargon in the long run."

"Still…"

"He has good reason to play nice with us, Rimuru." Tanya stepped forward, laying out a map of the continent on the table. "Here's Dwargon. And here's us." She pointed at each spot respectively. "Notice anything?"

"Hmm," Rimuru put his hand to his chin, "…We're in the center?"

"Yes, we are. Which means?"

The slime's brow furrowed as he looked closer at the map. Meanwhile, Tanya watched him think with an expectant look.

Rimuru was the leader of a nation; he needed to be able to figure out things like this on his own sometimes. She wouldn't accept a leader that couldn't use his own brain.

A moment later, he got it, to Tanya's relief.

"...Trade routes." He snapped his fingers. "That's right! We're in a great spot for trading, since we're right in the middle of the continent."

Tanya nodded.

"That's part of it. There's also political considerations involving the Kingdom of Falmuth and the Holy Empire, but those aren't the point of this discussion."

"Ha!" Gazel slapped his knee. "You know your stuff. Rimuru, she's right. This nation of yours is a ripe location for a trading hub, but right now it's a house of cards. With Dwargon's backing, you'll gain the legitimacy you need to make further connections, and in return, my nation gains a valuable and powerful ally. Along with first dibs on anything trade worthy. Isn't that right, my junior?"

Gazel ruffled Rimuru's hair with a laugh.

"Ah, is it smart of you to lay everything out like that?" Tanya, in a position she found herself in remarkably often, was forced to be the buzzkill.

"Perhaps." Gazel acknowledged her point with a nod. "But I believe it's better to say some things outright, and Rimuru and I are friends now. I don't wish to trick my junior when he's still growing as a leader."

Tanya sighed.

"Some things are better left unsaid, regardless of friendship." Why was common sense so sorely lacking in every world? "Well, it's to our benefit, so I won't complain."

Out loud, at least.

"By the way, what's the name of this nation of yours?" Gazel sat back, pulling deeply from his wine glass. "You've only referred to it as 'Tempest' so far. Is that its name? It's not very imposing for a Disaster Class nation."

"Eh? We're really Disaster Class?"

"Rimuru, please be more aware of these things." Tanya rolled her eyes, answering him before Gazel could. "Even before I knew about the Class system, I could tell your city of monsters was an oddity. It only makes sense that Tempest is considered dangerous."

"Well, okay," Rimuru looked embarrassed. "But, Disaster Class is a jump, isn't it? That's the highest there is, and we haven't done anything!"

"Not entirely true." Gazel interrupted. "There is a class above Disaster, though it rarely comes up. As the King of Tempest – and by the way, you should come up with a better name soon –you should be aware of this going forward."

"Alright…" Rimuru changed back into his slime form, hopping up onto the table. "What's the class above Disaster, then?"

Gazel took another drink, before letting out a breath.

"It's called the Catastrophe Class."

-=-=-=-

One Week Later, Late Morning

Sky Above Tempest

Tempest, Jura Tempest Federation

There were certain responsibilities that came with being one of the top Executives of the Jura Tempest Federation. Overseeing financial and economic concerns, researching past and present political matters, organizing new construction and expansion projects, training for and carrying out defense strategies…

Tanya's responsibilities were varied, and a mix of all of these and more.

Of course, she wasn't in charge of them all. That would be far too much work for one person (well, of anyone, Tanya could probably handle it), so at most she supervised and offered advising, suggestions, and potential revisions in key areas.

All in all, it was enjoyable work. Seeing the product of her labor come to near immediate fruition – or really, just seeing her ideas bear fruit at all – was immensely satisfying.

Though, there was perhaps something to be said about how easily Rimuru and the rest of Tempest accepted her into their fold, but it was nothing that really needed addressing at the moment. They could have talks about wariness and trusting strangers if the need later arose, though in all honesty Tanya had no real intention of doing so. Not unless it would be of benefit to her.

After all, Rimuru was an adult – mentally, though Tanya sometimes found herself questioning that – and the leader of a growing nation. He didn't need someone to hold his hand and tell him exactly what needed to be done.

And if he did, then he shouldn't be in a leadership role in the first place.

She would help out whenever necessary, of course. That went without saying. But at the end of the day, Rimuru needed to be able to stand on his own. It was only to hers and everyone else's benefit that Rimuru became a good leader – a great leader, hopefully, but Tanya wasn't going to get too picky – and good leaders weren't made with coddling.

But they did need guidance. So, Tanya would guide him in that direction, with as little interference as possible. That was part of her job now, anyways.

As was seeing to the defense of Tempest, like right now.

Now, most of the individual training of Tempest's defenders was overseen by Benimaru and Hakurou. Tanya didn't mind this at all. She'd had her fun once upon a time giving her subordinates Hell on the training fields. Sure, she occasionally supervised and participated specific training exercises, but training troops was no longer in her job description.

As a wise person once said, don't do more work than what you're paid for. Words to live by.

For now, she'd stick to the much easier part of the 'defense' portion of her job: aerial scouting.

Essentially, it was artillery spotting without the artillery.

This was actually one of the first ideas she'd implemented, that of a semi-active guard of some kind scouting and patrolling Tempest territory. Technically, Tempest's scouting was already done by Souei, his body doubles, and his own subordinates, with Magic Sense acting as a reliable backup for anything that happened to slip his net.

But there was one very obvious gap in Souei's reach, and it was one that Tanya immediately sought a solution for after the impromptu visit by King Gazel and his Pegasus Knights.

Air power. A crucially important facet of warfare, and one in which Tempest was sorely lacking.

The simple truth of the matter was that there were very few monsters in the Jura Tempest Federation with consistent or otherwise trustworthy flight capabilities – and no, Tanya refused to count Gabiru and his cohort as anything approaching 'competent', even if they were excellent flyers in their own right – besides Rimuru, herself, and some of Souei's subordinates.

Hell, given that Tanya could count the number of potential aerial observers on less than two hands, she was almost willing to consider Mary fucking Sue for the position. At least then the girl would be doing something more productive with her time.

Though, Mary had been far more active over the past week, to her credit. She'd actually left her room, for one, and had continued to go out and explore the city on every subsequent day. Tanya kept an eye on her with Magic Sense, but since the girl never wandered very far beyond the city's gates, Tanya had largely left her to her own devices.

In any case, there were more than a few problems that kept Tanya from making Mary an aerial observer. For one thing, Tanya straight up did not trust Mary. No need to explain why. For another, there was next to no chance Mary would take orders from her, even if Rimuru had designated Tanya as Mary's "supervisor". In other words, "babysitter". Again, this needed no further explanation.

There was also one more glaring issue.

Here's the thing. Mary Sue… could not fly. Not anymore, at least.

It seems that while Tanya had kept and integrated the formulae-based magic system of her previous world through the use of her Unique Skill: Formulaic Casting, Mary had not.

Hence the "Unique" in "Unique Skill".

So, it thus came to be that Mary, while still having a high mana pool to draw from, was not able to draw on specific the magic system – or an imitation of it, as Formulaic Casting did– of their previous world.

Again, the only reason Tanya could do so was because of Formulaic Casting. This world simply did not work the same way their old one did, and Mary was the one to suffer for it.

What a shame, Tanya had thought to herself at the time, with only slight sarcasm.

It truly was a shame, all things considered. Flying was perhaps the greatest gift that had come out of her first impromptu reincarnation. It was immensely freeing to be able to soar through the air without a care in the world, and the thought of that being taken away was enough to make even her mildly uncomfortable, as did all things that infringed on the freedom of humans.

It was even enough to make her feel a semblance of, in the vaguest and most insubstantial form of the word, pity towards the girl.

For about a second.

With all that being said, and with a limited pool of participants to draw from, it thus ended up that Tanya herself managed aerial observation most of the time.

Not that she really minded. It was an easy job, given how peaceful Tempest was currently. She basically got the fly around aimlessly above the city while keeping an eye on the sky around her. And even that wasn't needed most of the time, since she had access to Magic Sense and Though Communication.

Yes, this job was shaping up to be yet another easy, productive experience. The perfect combination. In truth, there was very little that could ruin such a-

"What the hell?" Tanya blinked, stopping in midair. She pulled her goggles down around the neck of her flight suit, rubbing her eyes and squinting just to make sure she wasn't seeing things.

Unfortunately, she was not seeing things. A quick activation of Magic Sense quickly confirmed this.

There was someone flying towards Tempest.

Well specifically, they were heading to a forest-surrounded field directly south of Tempest. Not that the location itself was the most important thing here.

No, the most important thing here was that-

Their magic output is insane! It's higher than mine or even Sue's Being X-boosted output back in that other world.

So much for this being an "easy, productive experience".

Rimuru should have sensed this already. Hopefully he'll arrive first and I won't have to deal with it.

Tanya pulled her goggles back up and took off.

-=-

"Wahahaha!"

Why is it always me? Why must I deal with it?

"Nice to meet you! I'm the Destroyer, the Demon Lord Milim Nava!" The pink-haired girl announced, pointing at herself with her thumb. "You're one of the strongest around here, so I figured I'd say hi!"

It was silent for a moment.

"…Is that it?" Tanya sweatdropped.

The girl, Milim, didn't notice her exasperation, glancing around with a contemplative expression.

"Hey hey, where's your boss at?"

"Huh?"

"You know, the slime guy! He's way strong, but he isn't here. I don't feel him around anywhere. Isn't this his city?"

Come to think of, I can't feel him either. Of all the times to suppress your aura, Rimuru, you sure picked a hell of a time.

"So Milim, how did you know I'm one of the strongest?" Tanya said in lieu of answering.

At the very least, I can stall. The gap between us is huge, but I don't doubt I could hold my own.

"Aha, are you trying to hide your aura? My Dragon Eye let's me see through that silly trick."

Dragon Eye? What?

"Is there a reason you're showing up in Tempest out of the blue? Have we done anything of warrant the attention of a Demon Lord such as yourself?"

Milim tilted her head. "Didn't I tell you that? I came to say hi."

....Huh?

"I want to meet the slime that beat the Orc Lord and see his strength for myself! Oh, and he had a human form too! I bet he'd put up a good fight. Now where is he?"

"What, am I not interesting enough for you?" Tanya said sarcastically, raising an eyebrow, "Rimuru may be the strongest in Tempest, but he's not here at the moment. Right now, I'm standing in his stead, so if there's anything you wish to speak about regarding the Jura Tempest Federation, then I'm the one to talk too."

"The Jura Tempest Federation? Who cares about that?" Milim laughed obnoxiously. "I just wanna talk to the strongest guy around, you know? So, bring him out here!"

"Or what, Demon Lord Milim?"

"Hm?" Milim blinked, "'Or what', you said? Well, I guess if Tempest needs a little destruction to get him out here, then I'll do it, you know?"

Such a simple threat, yet this girl's power tells me its no joke. Must I always be the one to deal with things?

"No, I don't know." Tanya rolled her shoulders, slowly activating her usual flurry of enhancement and reinforcement formulas. "Sorry, but Tempest is my home now. I quite enjoy the peaceful life this nation has afforded me. I'd say I'm absolutely content with the way it is currently, thank you very much. So, if you insist on interfering with that, I'm afraid I'll be forced to get involved."

"Wahahaha!" Milim threw back her head and laughed, "I don't get why you're being so serious, but I'm a Demon Lord you know? If I want to do something, a mere human isn't going to stop me."

She shot Tanya a shark-toothed grin.

"You're strong, human, but not that strong."

"The name's Tanya." She relaxed slightly as a familiar presence registered in Magic Sense, "And we'll see, won't we?"

Immediately after Tanya finished speaking, a purple blur flew over her head, their massive sword crashing down on Milim's position.

"Miss Tanya, let us handle this!"

Tanya deigned not to respond, deciding to instead float backwards out of range.

The reason why became apparent soon enough, as the smoke from the impact cleared.

"What's this about?" Milim's expression was shadowed, Shion's blade gripped tightly in the palm of the Demon Lord's hand. "You wanna go?"

Shion jumped backwards, "Sir Benimaru, Souei!"

"Arcane Thread Fetters!"

"Maximum Hell Flare!"

In an instant, Milim was ensnared by threads and blasted with fire magic.

Tanya glanced at the crater the move created with mild interest

"So…" She started, "Has that combination move you guys do ever, you know, worked?"

"Huh? What do you-" Benimaru began, before cutting himself off as he noticed the very much intact shape in the smoke. "Okay, in our defense, we knew it wouldn't do much this time."

"'Wouldn't do much'? Benimaru, it did literally nothing. I've seen the move twice, and it's had zero effect both times. For Tempest's sake, I urge you to come up with something better." And then, just to push his buttons in the proper order, "For Rimuru's sake, if nothing else."

"Tch."

Buttons pushed.

"Right. Souei." Tanya called to the blue-haired Kijin. "Where is Rimuru?"

"Lord Rimuru should be in the Sealed Cave right now." Souei responded, jumping back and landing to Tanya's left.

"Well then, send a body double and get his ass over here."

"Absolutely not!" Shion exclaimed, landing to Tanya's right. "Lord Rimuru must stay away from such a danger! We'll handle this instead!"

"You're joking, right?" Tanya turned around, noting the absolutely serious expressions on all of the Kijins' faces. "You are not joking. Listen, if we don't want to die, I insist we bring Rimuru here before this crazy Demon Lord decides to bring him here herself."

"I refuse to risk Lord Rimuru's life like that." Benimaru declared, stepping past Tanya.

"Agreed. Lord Rimuru must stay where it is safe. We are his Executives, so we'll handle this threat." Souei moved forward as well.

Shion merely nodded at the other's words, before following suit.

Tanya watched them approach the crater with an incredulous look.

I was right on the mark when I first met them, huh? These idiots are crazy! I could take them all on myself, yet they think they can hold off a Demon Lord? And anyways, no one here can protect Rimuru better than himself. There's no way I can get involved with that sort of irrational logic. This is stupid. Way too stupid. They're basically just giving their lives away, and for what? I can't-

"Wahahaha! That was strong! You might be able to seriously hurt one of the weaker Demon Lords like that." Milim jumped out of the crater, landing in front of the three Kijin. "But not me. I'm way stronger than them! See for yourself!"

Tanya's eyes widened, instinctively throwing up her active barrier as Milim's aura skyrocketed.

Dust and earth kicked up, a massive wind roaring across the landscape as the Demon Lord's power jumped up by several magnitudes.

Then, it was over. Tanya quickly dropped her hand from where it was shielding her eyes.

That's- that's absurd. She observed the carnage in shock, a bead nervous sweat dripping down the back of her neck. The crater from Benimaru and Souei's combined attack had been expanded several times over, with each of the three Kijin lay around the outer edge with various levels of damage. At least they all appeared to be breathing.

Logically, it was nothing she hadn't seen before. Craters, injured bodies, devastating magic.

But, for all this to result just from a power up…

She's a monster. A real monster. What kind of insane power is this? She was hiding this much? I can't get involved in this. Not if I want to enjoy a long life. I have to-

Tanya glanced at the bodies of her fellow Executives once more.

I can't get involved, but I can't leave them behind. I have to fight, don't I? Who's knows what'll happen if I leave this crazy girl with them. I can't even imagine the amount of work I'd have to do if they all died. Shit, I'd be put in charge of Tempest's defense in Benimaru's place! I'd have to pick up Souei's slack in scouting, since there's barely any else that can do his work. And Shion… actually, does she really do anything? Never mind, that's not the point.

Milim floated out of the crater's center, landing near Benimaru's barely conscious form.

Yes, for the sake of an easy life, I can't let them die. Get up, you slackers! Don't make me do your work for you!

"Wahahaha! Is that it? I barely got to have any fun! Well, if we're done here, I'll just," She pointed at Benimaru, "End things here. Better luck next time!"

"Oi!"

Milim straightened up immediately.

"Oh, the human!"

Dammit, I have to stall until Rimuru gets here… that's a bitch. I don't even know if he knows-

Tanya felt like slapping herself.

"Rimuru! Hey, Rimuru!"

The reply was immediate. "Tanya? What's up?"

"Get your ass over here! A Demon Lord calling herself the Destroyer showed up and just kicked the crap out of Benimaru, Souei, and Shion. We're in some serious shit right now, so hurry up!"

Tanya cut off the connection without waiting for a reply.

"I told you, the name's Tanya." She called back.

"Yeah, that! Did you wanna fight too?" Milim turned towards her. "Even if you're a human, you can fight, right?"

"Someone should have taught you this lesson already, but I guess I'll be the one to do it." Tanya crouched slightly, holding her arms tight to her sides. "Humans, monsters, Demon Lords… don't put too much stock in those sorts of things. Strength comes from willpower. From desire, self-discipline, ingenuity. Not a title. Don't underestimate humans."

"Oh?" Milim crouched as well. "Someone weak wants to lecture me, a Demon Lord?"

"Tch." Tanya flexed her hands. "Weak? Don't make me laugh."

False bravado, fail me not.

Tanya had called Rimuru the strongest in Tempest, and this was true to an extent.

I guess I can't afford to hold back here. I wanted more time to test this first, but I don't have any other options.

However, this was only when considering Rimuru's Unique Skill: Gluttony. Given that Tanya's combat style generally leaned more towards long-range magical combat, much if not all of her magical advantage was negated by the absorption-based Skill.

A fact which she had been diligently working to rectify.

However, Tanya wasn't fighting Rimuru.

Ignoring Gluttony entirely, in terms of sheer magic potential and magicules, Tanya's own Skills put her in a class of her own. And this was for one very specific reason.

Unique Skill: Tetrabattery Limit Enhancement.

Also known as: the Skill that had replaced her Type 95 upon reincarnating into this world. There hadn't been much time to test it, what with how busy she'd been integrating with Tempest, but she had been able to confirm its functions at least.

At its most basic level, Tetrabattery Limit Enhancement – or TLE for short – was a storage and release type Skill. Similar to her Type 95, TLE gave Tanya the ability to store massive amounts of mana within the Skill, and then later release that mana at her discretion. This function was pretty much the exact same as it was with the Type 95.

The difference, however, lay in how the mana was released and used. With the Type 95, mana flowed through and from within the computation orb, out into the world by way of formulae. Spells were thus cast from the Type 95 using stored mana, and it was this effect that allowed Tanya to create levels of magical phenomena in the physical world that many had compared to miracles of God.

TLE was not a conduit for spells the way the Type 95 and other computation orbs were. Instead, it was storage and release Skill that used the stored mana to power and enhance magic that had been cast, using Tanya's body as the conduit. A convoluted powerup Skill, in other words.

The bonus of this was that mental corruption was a nonfactor, with the amount of magic only limited by the amount stored. 

Of course, there was another issue. Without the Type 95 as a conduit and Being X's curse making such vast amounts of magic flow without issue, all that stored magical power was channeled solely through Tanya's own body. 

Naturally, the more magic she used, the harder it was to properly channel. Even with her incredible mana efficiency, such was the case. 

As much as I hate doing this, I'll have to test it out on the fly. TLE Output…

Tanya inhaled deeply, then exhaled. This Skill had one other important trait. TLE did not possess four cores like the Type 95 did. That notion had become obsolete thanks to this world's different system of magic. Rather, this 'core' function had transitioned into something else: four 'levels' of release, similar to the release valves on a dam, with each subsequent level allowing more mana to flow through and enhance Tanya's abilities.

Each level allowed a greater amount of stored magic to be used. Thus, channeling magic became that much more difficult the higher the levels went. 

And with the incredible amount of magic Tanya had managed to store up until now, the margin of error at higher levels was...

...Incredibly small. This was only exacerbated by her lack of practical experience with the Skill.

Hopefully, it wouldn't come to that. Yeah, right.

Right now, she'd start off at the lowest level. The name of which was-

…Level One.

A simple name that detailed exactly what it was. Just how she liked it.

Tanya's aura did not explode the way Milim's did. Instead, an outline around her body itself began to shine, her eyes glowing a bright teal. 

"Oh!" Milim's eyes shined as well, though from excitement rather than magic. "Your power just skyrocketed! This should be fun!"

Tanya didn't get the chance to respond with a snarky quip like she'd been intending, as Milim launched herself forward immediately after.

She's fast! Tanya's eyes widened a fraction.

She brought her arms up, barely managing to block Milim's punch in time. The ground cracked at the force, the wind from the blow ruffling her hair violently.

And way too strong. I couldn't even think to put up my barrier in time.

Milim's own eyes widened. "Whoa, you took my hit!"

Shit, I need to kick it up a notch, and we only just started.

"Like I said," Tanya hid her concern with a smirk. "Don't underestimate humans."

Level Two.

The glow around her intensified, and she threw her arms out to the side, breaking the stalemate.

Then, the fight began in earnest.

Tanya jumped back, an optical spell erupting from her outstretched hand. Milim batted it to the side, dashing forward for another punch.

Tanya responded in kind, a shockwave ringing out as their arms crashed together. They pushed against one another, before pulling back and clashing again a split second later.

And again. And again.

At increasing speeds, the two exchanged blows, striking and dodging and striking once more. Neither landed many hits, one too caught up surviving to care and the other laughing joyously at the experience itself.

Tanya ducked a kick, launching one of her own into Milim's stomach.

Unfazed, Milim leaned into the hit, bending over and slugging Tanya across the face.

"Fuck!" Tanya gripped her nose with one hand, the other outstretched as she jumped backwards yet again.

Recognizing this, Milim pressed her advantage, darting forward to beat out the magical attack she knew was coming.

Except, that was exactly what Tanya wanted. Just as Milim reached her, a blinding light erupted from Tanya's open palm.

"Gah!" Milim stumbled back, rubbing her eyes furiously. "No fair!"

You're…

Tanya lunged forward, one hand still gripping her face and the other forming a mage blade.

…wide open!

Her mage blade crashed against Milim's abdomen, shattering into multicolored shards.

Huh?

Tanya's fist kept going, burying itself in the other girl's stomach and forcing her backwards hard enough to form trenches in the dirt. Tanya pulled away, narrowly avoiding a blind swing, before jumping and flying up high to avoid another.

Thinking quickly, Tanya pointed her palm directly downwards.

Explosion Formula.

The ground beneath Milim feet exploded, fire and smoke engulfing her completely.

Tanya flew up even higher, taking a moment to catch her breath.

You've got to be kidding me. Right now, I have as much magical power running through me than I did with the Type 95. And my mage blade couldn't even scratch her! I'm fighting for my damn life, and she's doesn't even look like she's trying.

Her left hand unconsciously clenched.

"Ack!" Tanya pulled her hand away from her face, noting the blood soaking into her black glove.

My nose is broken from a punch that barely connected. She glanced down at her partially wrecked flight suit. And even glancing blows are enough to tear and do damage.

The sound of coughing drew Tanya's attention back to the ground.

"Geh! Gross!" Milim coughed, rubbing her eyes with one hand and waving away smoke with the other. "You're good! But tricks won't work forever."

Milim looked around the area, still coughing and waving.

"You can't hide forever you know!"

Hide? Sure, I'm suppressing my aura again, but…

Tanya's eyes narrowed.

…She doesn't know where I am? I thought her "Dragon Eye" or whatever let her see through that? Unless… no, that'd be…

Tanya flared her aura, reactivating TLE at Level Two. Immediately, she noticed Milim's expression posture shift, her gaze shooting up and lasering in on Tanya's position.

When I interrupted her vision and moved out of sight, she couldn't find me right away. Similarly, she didn't go find Rimuru herself, instead seeking me out. That implies a limit on range, or perhaps line of sight? How specific is the technique? She seemed surprised when I activated TLE initially, so I can really only guess at the limits.

Milim crouched down, as if to take off.

There's one thing I'm almost certain of though. Milim's Dragon Eye… does she need her eyes open to activate it? Maybe, maybe not, but it does seem like her Skill is something that needs to be activated in the first place.

Tanya tensed as Milim jumped, leaving yet another crater on the ground. The Demon Lord rocketed towards her, in line for a dead-on collision.

Which means there should be a gap, no matter how small. I can't keep up with my current power, which means there's no brute forcing this. Let's see how many tricks you can really see through, Demon Lord.

At the last moment, Tanya twisted to the side. Milim blasted by, a comically surprised look on her face.

Now, just to be safe. Level Three.

The air electrified. Tanya's eyes shone vibrantly, her outline running hot enough to spark against the air around her.

Milim slowly floated down in front of her, clearly in awe. Like a child at a candy store.

"Whoa! You're like, way stronger now!" She raised her fists and bounced excitedly. "Let's keep fighting! Come on, come on!"

Tanya ignored her for a moment. Her muscles clenched and unclenched, liquid fire burning across her body as more mana than ever coursed through her veins and mana circuits.

I should just be stalling for time. That's all I can really do here.

Slowly and deliberately, she exhaled, steam drifting from clenched teeth.

But you're really pissing me off. Fine then.

"Let's go." 

Neither moved for several moments.

As if by some unseen signal, they bolted forward at the same time, crashing together with enough force to shake the very air around them.

They danced in place, exchanging blow after blow in a blurred flurry. Each pulled back, slamming their knees together with another shockwave.

Then, to the shock of the injured Kijin below, they almost seemed to disappear from sight, moving at high speeds through the air in a high stake game of cat and mouse. They clashed periodically, shockwaves and gusts of air accompanying each blocked and dodged blow.

As quickly as the exchange began, it ended, with Tanya reappearing above the day's first crater.

Milim reappeared as well, charging forward for a shoulder tackle. Tanya slipped to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack.

She threw out her hand, sending a barrage of minor optical spells Milim's way. Milim bulldozed through them all, and immediately was on top of her again, her fist smashing against Tanya's hasty block.

Before Milim could pull back for another strike, Tanya twisted her crossed arms, gripping Milim's own arm and heaving her downwards.

Milim quickly stopped herself.

"That won't work so easily- Gah!"

Tanya hammered the top of Milim's head with clasped hands, sending her to the unforgiving dirt below.

"Owie~!" She yelled all the way down, dirt kicking up on impact and further wrecking the area.

Tanya wiped at her bloody nose, her breath coming out in ragged spurts. Immediately, she dropped to Level Two, sighing with relief as the fire in her blood faded.

I can't keep doing this. Salt and metal mingled on her tongue, blood and sweat dripping down her face. But that's fine. I haven't even used my best stalling tool.

Tanya glanced down at the torso of her flight suit, which was barely more than tattered threads and fabric held together by her similarly damaged harness. Her gloves were in the same state, one having disintegrated entirely whilst the other more closely resembled fingerless knuckle-covers.

Luckily, her black long-sleeved undershirt was unharmed, other than a small tear across the stomach area, and her pants and boots had gotten out largely unscathed.

Small mercies. Still, this loose scrap will only give me way.

Without hesitation, she tore the flight suit torso and the top half of her harness off, using a mage blade to rip away a few stubborn pieces. Then, she tossed it all to the side, where it slowly drifted to tree line below. 

-=-

Art by Me (@tanjaded)

-=-

Now, clad in her undershirt, flight suit pants, and boots, Tanya was ready. She made to pull her goggles up, then paused as she realized they weren't around her neck anymore.

Her arms slowly fell to her sides.

Just another thing I'll have to replace.

Before she could lament her destroyed clothing anymore, motion from below caught her eye.

"Souei, can you hear me? I need you to…"

On the ground below, Milim threw her arms out, her aura bursting violently into being once more. The crater she was in further expanded, then expanded even more as she took off.

"Thanks."

Tanya prepped herself, squeezing as much mana as she could out of Level Two.

"Take this!" Milim blasted upwards, beelining for Tanya in a now very familiar move. She wound up her arm, preparing to throw what would no doubt be a devastating blow. "Milim Punch!!!"

The punch hit Tanya head on… then, went directly through her without any resistance whatsoever.

"Eh?" Milim stared, bewildered, as the illusion of Tanya around her arm fizzled out of existence.

"Up here!"

Milim's head shot up. Her eyes widened.

"Eh?!?!"

Higher, way higher, Tanya floated, looking down with her arm extended. Multiple balls of mana surrounded her and her palm, multicolored sparks dancing between them. The glow around her was now almost radioactive in its glow, the air seeming to physically warp like heat waves around her form.

Milim glanced down at the Kijin below, then back up at Tanya.

"No way." A bead of sweat dripped down her neck. "If that much magic hits the ground, it'll send this place sky high. There's no way she'll fire."

The mana spheres around Tanya grew bigger, currents of mana crackling ever more violently between them.

"Even if I block it, it'll be too wide. She's not crazy, right?"

That was rich coming from her, of course, but in this moment it really did seem like Milim was the sane one.

Tanya pulled her arm back.

Milim grinned wildly, a tinge of shock flashing across her expression.

"Okay, she is crazy!"

The world seemed to freeze for a moment, as Tanya threw her arm forward.

"She's really-"

"Souei, now!"

"What?" Milim blinked in shock as the Tanya she'd been so heavily focused on disappeared. "Another illusion?!"

"Arcane Thread Fetters!"

Sticky Steel threads wrapped around her for the second time that day.

"Crap!"

"Milim." The air rippled in front of her, an illusion of the sky fading as Tanya reappeared in front of her. Her arm was pulled back, a singular ball of mana fluctuated violently in her palm. "Good fight."

She thrust her arm forward, pressing the sphere against Milim abdomen.

"Optical Formula: TLE Level Four!"

Milim disappeared from sight, a tidal wave of bright blue magical energy engulfing her.

Tanya grit her teeth and pressed forward even more, the spell pouring from her palm with its flow and intensity. She held on for as long as possible, ozone scratching at her nose as the atmosphere electrified around her. Lave scorched her very bones as the immense amount of mana roared though her. 

Crack!

Tanya bit back a curse, finally letting go of the formula and rapidly descending.

Fucking hell! Even with my reinforcement and enhancement spells active, my arm is-

She landed heavily, barely managing to keep her knees from buckling. Leaning to one side, Tanya let her right arm dangle limply. Blood dripped from her nose and fingers, pooling in her mouth and the dirt.

It's definitely broken. I overloaded it by a long shot. Tanya winced as a fresh wave of pain flooded through her system. Would it have been better to use both arms? But, with how bad this is now, using both might have netted me two broken arms instead of one. All that mana is clearly too much for my body to handle right now.

A ping against her Magic Sense had Tanya glancing up.

"Seriously?" Tanya said tiredly.

"Seriously!" Milim landed a few meters away from her, a curious – and intrigued, Tanya noted with exasperation and exhaustion – look on her face. "My stomach hasn't itched like this in ages!"

She pointed proudly at her stomach. Sure enough, there was a bright red mark wrapping around and across her entire belly. The color was already fading away.

I shattered my arm and used up all my stored mana for that? And she has regeneration too? Go fuck yourself.

"You're a monster."

"And you're a human!" Milim smiled excitedly. She clenched and unclenched her hand a few times, before pulling it back as though she were about to punch. "You're one of the strongest humans I've met, I think. You're kinda like Leon!"

"Leon?" Tanya raised an eyebrow, barely managing to keep with the conversation. "Who's that?"

Is this 'Leon' a Demon Lord as well? She used his name alone, suggesting some level of familiarity. How many Demon Lords are there?

"He used to be a human before he became a Demon Lord, and he's crazy powerful! Oh, and you're both blonde!"

Hell. Why is such a childish, irrational girl so damn powerful? Who authorized this? I do appreciate it from the perspective of someone who lacks vital information, but what kind of idiot goes around giving away such things to people they've just met?!

"And that matters, why?"

"Hm?" Milim tilted her head. "I just thought it was funny. I bet he'd be interested in you guys too, just like some of the others are."

"Some of the others"? Damnit, if Demon Lords already have their eyes on us, then Tempest will have to be even more on guard than I imagined… Is peace truly too much to ask for? Even in another world?

"Thrilling." Tanya remarked.

No, I suppose it doesn't matter. I'm going to survive and live a peaceful life, no matter what happens. If I have to become stronger than Demon Lords to do so, then so be it.

"So, you ready to keep going?"

"Does it look like-"

There was yet another ping against Tanya's Magic Sense.

Ah, finally.

Tanya held up her good hand. "Actually, I concede."

"Huh?" Milim pulled up short.

"You sure took your time," Tanya glanced backwards, "Rimuru."

Rimuru marched forward, his scarf swaying in the breeze.

"Yeah. Sorry, Tanya." Rimuru tossed a full potion over her head as he passed. "I was in the Sealed Cave speaking with Vesta. The magicules in there skewed my Magic Sense, so I didn't know what was happening until your message came through."

"You're here now." Tanya's own Magic Sense went off for the nth time that day. She straightened up, her eyes slid over to the tree line. "So don't worry about that. Just deal with it."

Rimuru nodded.

"Yeah."

-=-

With everything that had gone on since she'd arrived in this world, Tanya probably should have expected something as stupid as honey being the solution to a fight-thirsty Demon Lord.

"I feel vaguely insulted." Benimaru muttered. Tanya found herself silently agreeing.

"Well, that's that!" Rimuru grinned, "Let's head back to the city now."

Tanya glanced to the side, to the area her Magic Sense had earlier pointed her at.

"Oi, Rimuru, I've got to take care of something real quick. I'll meet you all back in town after."

"Hm?" Rimuru looked at her quizzically, before shrugging. "Well, if that's what you want. Don't take too long, yeah?"

Tanya huffed out a laugh. "Sure thing."

Not too long after that, everyone cleared out.

Tanya glanced over at the tree line once more.

"You can come out now."

Nothing happened for a few seconds.

Then, a booted foot stepped out from the trees.

"What are you doing out here, Sue?"

Mary said nothing, walking forward until she and Tanya were only a few meters apart. Belatedly, Tanya noticed the torn-up remnants of her flight suit harness in Mary's left hand.

Along with her backup knife's empty holster.

Tanya's eyes narrowed.

"Why did you do that?" Mary asked quietly.

"What?"

"Why did you put yourself on the line for nothing, you damn Devil?"

Mary's catchphrase lacked the usual venom, Tanya idly noted.

"Hah? I'm not here to play twenty questions. Be more specific."

Mary tossed the harness to the ground.

"You. You're a monster. A demon. Why are you being so, so… protective, of this place." Mary reached behind her, pulling Tanya's missing knife from her belt. "This city, Tempest, is- it's peaceful. Lively. The monsters, the people here are innocent and happy and-"

She trailed off, her reversed grip on the knife tightening. Tanya tensed up in preparation.

A light breeze floated through the clearing, the silence between them stretching what felt like forever.

Mary shifted her footing, "You're a Devil. Why is someone like you protecting them!?"

She lunged forward, her eyes flashing bright green as she stabbed the knife downwards.

Tanya caught her by the wrist, using both arms to hold her back.

Mary's eyes flashed again. Tanya let go and sidestepped as the girl stabbed down with even more force than before.

"So that's one of your Skills, huh? What a waste." Tanya taunted, dancing out of Mary's reach as she sliced the air. "Even with that, I won't need Skills to beat you."

Mary snarled, lunging forward with another stab.

Tanya stepped inside the wild motion, striking the inside of Mary's wrist with her palm.

Mary's arm went wide, the knife flying from her grasp. Immediately, Tanya grabbed Mary's arm and twisted it behind her back.

"I know you can do better than that." Tanya twisted her arm harder for split second, before letting go and kicking the back of Mary's knees.

Mary hit the ground hard.

"Why do this? Why risk everything to attack me, if you weren't even going to put any actual effort in to it?"

"I, I don't…" Mary pushed herself on hands and knees, gaze locked on the ground below.

"What? You don't what?" Tanya crossed her arms, "Did you even have a reason for attacking me? Or have you decided to stay in dreamland, where angels and devils do battle in black and white storybooks? Go on then. Tell me! What reason do you have for-"

"I don't understand!"

Tanya paused.

"I don't get it! Why is- why am I here?! Why am I still alive?" Mary pushed herself up more, glaring at Tanya with tear-filled eyes. "Everything I've known is a lie! Is that what you wanted to hear!? Huh?! That God won't speak to me anymore, that for the first time in years I can think clearly without his voice in the back of my head, telling me what I thought was the truth!"

Mary dropped her head.

"I don't understand anything anymore. Even you're not…" Mary trailed off "Why... are you doing this? Why aren't you..."

Tanya gave her a contemplative look.

"Do you want me to kill you?"

"Wha- why are you even asking me, you damn-" Mary's head shot up again, her hands scraping lines in the dirt. "Just- just do it! At least let me be right about one thing!"

Tanya shook her head. "No. I have no interest in vengeance, Mary Sue. Nor in being a murderer. The things I do and have done, they're because they make sense, or because they are necessary."

Mary froze. Tanya continued.

"Make no mistake: I don't like you. Not one bit. You, or at least, your previous self, represents everything I hate in humanity. Blind faith, irrationality, letting your decisions be ruled by emotions… Being X found his perfect reflection in you, I suppose."

"My previous self…?" The other girl whispered.

Tanya turned away entirely, training her eyes on the clear sky above.

"I decided on the day we reincarnated here that I would let you live, for no reason other than that I thought it would be a shame to waste such a potentially useful person such as yourself. Even now, my decision hasn't changed. After all, that bastard Being X is gone now, and keeping useless grudges is both a fool's game and a waste of energy."

Mary gazed at her incomprehensibly, tears slowly rolling down her cheeks.

"You are a girl whose childhood was cruelly stripped away by circumstance. You've known little other than war and sorrow and hatred. Above all, you're a victim, aren't you? But you're free now." Tanya paused a moment, before sighing. "Use the cards you are given to get the future that you want. That's the right we have as humans. It's what makes us human. You've been dealt a new hand, Mary Sue. Be your own human for once."

She made to leave then, reaching down to pick up her harness and knife along the way.

"If I'm free…" Mary began quietly "Then why does it hurt so much?"

Tanya hesitated, glancing back at the other girl.

"Do you think freedom is possible without blood?"

And with that, Tanya slowly walked away.

Mary let her go without response.

-=-=-=-=-=-

Known Skills List

Tanya:

Common Skill: Thought Communication

Extra Skill: Magic Sense

Extra Skill: Magic Aura

Extra Skill: Voice of the World Communication

Unique Skill: Formulaic Casting

Unique Skill: Tetrabattery Limit Enhancement

Mary:

Extra Skill: Magic Sense

Extra Skill: Magic Aura

Other Skills Unknown

Notes:

Finally, one of my favorite characters is introduced: Milim! And naturally, the situation becomes a slugfest. I also finally explained Tanya's other Unique Skill, and gave Mary another character development moment. She even used one of her Skills, though I never said what it actually did. I merely implied it in such a way that can easily be misinterpreted. Such is the joy of being a writer.

Thanks for reading!