01x01 - Ryoma, with the Slimes

[bunniefuu]

My name is Ryoma Takebayashi.
I'm 11 years old.

For certain reasons,
I live alone, deep in the forest.

Actually, I'm not exactly alone.

I live with nearly a thousand Slimes.

The Slimes will evolve if you feed them.

They will evolve into Sticky Slimes
if you feed them green caterpillars.

They will produce mucus
to create strong silk,

which is helpful in hunting.

Acid Slimes can digest
hard substances like bones

with their acid.

When a Slime
eats poisonous grass and survives,

it becomes a Poison Slime.

Due to its tenacity, it divides itself
much faster than other Slimes.

The Cleaner Slimes eat filth
to keep things clean.

They can even remove odors.

The Scavenger Slimes eat feces and trash,
turning them into fertilizer.

Although I sometimes have to fight off
Goblins and bandits,

life is still good.

Brace yourself, Hughes!

-Hughes!
-Hughes!

I'm sure things will remain the same

-for the rest of my life.
-Brace yourself, Hughes!

At least, that's what I thought.

Bandits? I don't think so.

Why are they here, deep in the forest?

-How is it, Camil?
-Sorry.

I tried to use a healing spell,
but I'm out of magic.

We have to bring him back downtown,
or he's not going to make it.

Excuse me.

Who are you?

I…

Why is there a child here?

I have not spoken to anyone for years.
My voice is…

Medicine, I have.

Why am I talking in broken Japanese?

Medicine?

Yes. Medicine, I have.

Quickly.

What do you think?

It's safe. This is indeed medicine.

Hughes!

He's just asleep. He's fine for now.

Thank you.

My house, rest. Would you like to come?

Can we?

Why is there a child deep in the forest?

He's dressed like a hunter,
but he's all alone.

What is it?

Caught something, be here soon.

Who is coming?

Those are Slimes!

Not enemies!

Do these Slimes belong to you?

Forgive us.
We didn't know they're your familiars.

Slimes sure bring back memories.

I signed my first contract with a Slime.

Are you a familiar conjurer?

I used to be.

My family has been conjurers
for generations.

We have summoned red horses
and blizzard apes.

I see.

So he is a noble. Could he be the leader?

It's the end of the road.

Where do you live?

Please wait.

This way.

There's some kind of barrier spell
that conceals his place?

Yes.

This is a nice place.

Right.

Thanks to you, we can get some rest.

Don't you find it weird?

What is it, Zeph?

The furniture shows that
only one person lives here.

Indeed.

-Does he live here all by himself?
-That's not possible.

Be it that he was able to approach us
without us noticing or he knows magic,

he might be older than he looks.

Here. This is for you.

Thank you very much.
We'll repay you someday.

It's okay. I can make as many as I want.

You made these?

You made these potions?

Yes.

Who exactly are you?

Oh, right. Do you want water?

-Ice?
-He knows freezing magic too?

Who are you?

I can't change the subject.

Well, my name is Ryoma.

Excuse my manners.

My name is Reinhart Jamil.

Lord of the Duchy of Jamil.

A duke?

I've behaved rudely!

It's okay. Forgo the formalities.

You saved our lives.

Yes…

I knew you were different,
but you're actually a duke.

I'm Camil, the mage. Pleased to meet you.

Thank you very much for saving Hughes.

I'm Zeph, the scout.
Nice to meet you, boy.

My name is Jill.
Sorry for pointing my sword at you.

It's all right.
You're right to be cautious.

Thank you for understanding.

It's all good. By the way…

We were ambushed by bandits
outside the woods.

Is that why he got injured?

No, the bandits were nothing.

It was a Black Bear
that came out of the woods.

So that's why.

We defeated the Black Bear,
but our horses ran away.

We tried to take Hughes back downtown
through the woods,

and we ran into you.

May I ask you some questions?

Sure.

Why are you here?

You know multiple spells
and you can even make potions.

Well…

my grandparents taught me everything.

They used to be adventurers.

I see. Are they both out of town?

They passed away three years ago.

Three years ago?

Before they passed away,
they wanted me to move to another village.

I'm an outsider,
so the villagers here hate me.

Now I understand.
But you live here all by yourself.

It's fine.
I've been living here for three years.

But…

Right, we can use that.

If a criminal touches this orb,
it will glow red.

Otherwise, it will glow blue.

It also tells you your name, race, age,

and the four advanced skills you possess.

If you have a very high combat skill,

we'll let you live here
in the woods all alone.

I understand.

Right, you're not a criminal.

What's this?

What happened?

Well, sadly, it didn't display
your combat skill.

Really?

I'll prepare dinner.

Thank you.

Take a look.

He's 11 years old.

That means he's been living alone
since he was eight.

As if that's not shocking enough,
his skills…

Housework, level 10.

Mind endurance, level 9.
Physical endurance, level 8.

What has he been through at his age?

We can't just leave him here.

But what should we do?

Let's go back and talk
to my father and Elise first.

Thanks for your help, boy.

Are you really okay?

Are you worried about me?

I heard you didn't want to go downtown,
so I thought you were very withdrawn.

Hughes.

You were injured.
I'm still worried about you.

Really? Well, thank you very much!

Are you okay?

I'm okay. Just a bit anemic.

Do you need a hematopoietic potion?

Thank you. I'll take one.

It smells terrible!

It works. I can guarantee that.

It's rude to turn him down. Drink it.

If you collapsed,
I wouldn't know what to do.

We are worried about you too.

Sorry!

Hey, boy. Bear this in mind.

I'm Hughes, the Duke's bodyguard.

If you need anything,
come to me in Gaunago.

Feel free to ask for help, get it?

Yes.

Everybody is so kind.

I feel bad about what I did.

I've lied to them.

I lied about my grandparents' death.

The person who died three years ago…

was me.

The Slimes will keep increasing.

How do I get down from here?

How stupid are you?

Why isn't it done yet?

-I said you must finish it before I leave.
-This was me three years ago.

I was older then.

-Are you working overtime today like me?
-And I lived in a different place.

-All right, get to work.
-One day, I woke up in a strange place.

Am I dead?

I see.

That's it?

Those who were here
were a lot more frantic than you.

You're so calm.

I'm quite surprised.

However, if this is a dream,
I will eventually wake up.

If this is real, then it's inevitable.

Besides, if I stay at the same job,

I will still die young.

I worked at a so-called black company.
We were loaded with work every day.

-You idiot!
-Our supervisor was unreasonable.

I had no days off
and was mentally and physically exhausted.

-Who exactly are you?
-We are gods.

I'm Gain, the Creator.

I'm Lulutia, the Goddess of Love.

I'm Kufo, the God of Life.

Thank you for your introductions.
My name is Ryoma Takebayashi.

Sorry, I don't have
my business cards with me.

That won't be necessary.
We're from another world.

You mean the parallel world?

Did you achieve
enlightenment or something?

It looks like we don't have
to try to convince you.

This is a common trope
in manga or animation.

-However…
-Yes?

How did I die?

You hit your head
and died from a brain hemorrhage.

You sneezed four times
while you were asleep.

Your pillow moved a little
every time you sneezed,

then your head hit the floor.

The blood vessels in your brain ruptured.
That's why you died.

Unacceptable!

-Why did I die that way?
-What?

If I were hit by my supervisor
with a beer bottle

or if I died while being punished
by my strict father, that would be fine.

But I died because of a few sneezes?

Is he having a meltdown?

His cause of death is too much
of a shock to him?

Looks like he was confident
about his physical condition.

I'm sorry, I've embarrassed myself.
Please continue.

Let me explain why we've summoned you.

It's called "the template."

I see. I'm going to a parallel world.
Will I be transformed?

Will I get reincarnated because I'm dead
or be given a mission?

Aren't you a fast learner?

Through transformation,

you will enter a body
that I created in the parallel world.

You will be eight years old again,
so it's like reincarnation.

Eight years old?

You don't really have a mission.

What do you mean?

When we send you there,

a hole will open up in the barrier
between our worlds.

EARTH, CELFORD

You and Earth's magic
will go through that hole into our world.

MAGIC, RYOMA'S SOUL

Magic?

In our world, magic is dying.

So you want to replenish magic?

Yes.

Nobody on Earth uses magic
even if there is magic.

Really?

Well…

When I'm there, can I also use magic?

-Yes.
-Yes.

Really?

Excuse me.

If you like, I'll grant you
all attributes of magic.

Won't that attract too much attention?

It's uncommon and not enough
to cause a commotion.

You will only be on a novice level.

I see.

They explained a lot
and gave me suggestions.

"My grandparents died,
and I left the village."

That's the story we came up with

because I can't say
I'm a reincarnation from Earth.

You will live a brand-new life
from now on.

You don't have to be too polite.
Just be yourself.

Be myself? Understood.

No. I mean, yes, I get it.

We'll be watching over you.

Go to church when you're in town.

If you have the clergy skill,
you can talk to us briefly.

All right, I'll definitely go there
when I'm in town.

Looks like it's time.

Live happily and healthily!

Thank you so much!

Okay, let's begin.

Open up the road to the new world!

By the grace of the gods…

…may your future shine brightly!

And then…

I'm now the eight-year-old
Ryoma Takebayashi

in the new world.

I've been reborn in Celford.

I'm in a kid's body.

Is this the parallel world?

The gods gave me a manual for my new life.

"Your current level is on the last page."

Sounds just like an online game.

Seems like I'm all brawn and no brain.

But well, I guess

it's an advantage from my past life.

I may be strong, but I'm still small.
I have to get used to this.

A Slime?

Can you give me your hand?

No?

Right, I can use magic.

Let's see.

"How to tame a creature."

"Familiar spells."

That's it! Let's see.

Remain calm and feel the magic. Feel it.

Is this magic?

I can feel the magic.

It's flowing through my body.

I've decided to live in
the forests of Gana.

Maybe it's because I didn't get to spend
much time on my hobbies.

I'm particularly passionate about Slimes.

Three years later,

I met humans for the first time
since I came here,

Reinhart and his friends.

It's been two weeks
since they returned to town.

There are 364 Sticky Slimes.

That's a huge increase.

I'm back to my normal life.

How nice.

What's going on?

Hey!

Ryoma!

How have you been?

Ever since I came to Celford,
it has just been me and the Slimes.

Things are about to change.