Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken (WN) 2018

c66 - - Chance Meeting

After sending Grucius back to Tempest, I tried to return myself but the skill wouldn't activate.
What's going on?
Grucius did just disappear in front of me a second ago, though...
These questions,

≪Announcement. You are inside a wide-range barrier. Transfer skills are sealed.≫

were answered by the『Great Sage』.
What?
I'm getting a bad feeling about this.
A feeling of impending doom that I have never felt before.
When Milim invaded, I did not feel any killing intent from her; so I was not that worried. But this time, all my senses are sounding the alarm.
Have I fallen into a trap?
I tried calling for Ranga from within my shadow, but he did not respond.
Seems like this barrier has completely isolated me from the outside world.
So it seems that I can neither call for aid nor escape.
The feeling of dread led to me to set up some things as insurance. At least I can still use my skills...

≪Announcement. You are inside a wide-range barrier. All magic energy manipulation abilities have been sealed.≫

What?!
That basically includes every type of magic that I use; even flame and lightning abilities have been sealed.
Moreover,『Steel Thread』and thread manipulation abilities have also been sealed.
So instead of thinking that I wandered into somebody's hunting ground, I am the one who is being hunted?
They permitted Grucius departure in order not to fight both of us at once. Had I decided to leave first, though, they might not have waited.
In that case, they can probably sense the flow of my magic.
What could they be planning?
I take stance in response to a relentless killing intent, and wait for the enemy to appear. I am of course trying to dispel the barrier, but to do that I need the『Great Sage』to analyze it first.
However, these long range barriers require more time to be analyzed.
In other words, I'm in a pinch.
This was the first time I felt my heart beat faster out of anxiety.
It was anxiety that I have never felt since coming into the world.
That could have been the result of me changing into the slime, but chances are, it's mostly due to the predictive abilities of the『Great Sage』.
Before I undertake anything, it can estimate the chances of me succeeding.
Which is why I have been able to face strong opponents fearlessly. Though they were strong, I could predict the outcome.
On the other hand, even facing certain defeat I did not feel anxious.
If I can't win, I should just run away. If I can't run away, let's at least punch them once.
But none of that mattered in this case. Here, without knowing my opponent's strength, I cannot predict the outcome.
However, I do feel their killing intent.
I don't know whether I can win, and I cannot run away. Nor do I know how many enemies I am facing.
A few humans would be needed to set up a barrier this large.
However, 『Heat Perception』is detecting only a single body approaching;『Magic Perception』is not responding.
So if I turned into a slime, I would be essentially blind.
In other words, I have lost that amazing perceptive ability and cannot view the entire battlefield at once.
The moment I was caught in this barrier, my chances of winning have fallen significantly.
However, to go out of one's way to seal an opponent's abilities...
So it's possible to fight like this. Moreover, the enemy doesn't even realize that they have been separated from the outside world.
Clearly the work of someone who professionally hunts monsters.
Chances are, the barrier is at least 4 kilometers wide. It's boundary is completely outside of my sight.
Their meticulousness is terrifying.
(Just who would do this, and why are they hunting me?)
When I thought that,

「Pleased to meet you, should I say? Though I won't know you for long」

A single person walking towards me threw such words at me.
I thought so for a while now, but I feel like I've seen her somewhere.
A nostalgic feeling when looking at her.
She has beautiful, glossy black hair at about shoulder height, with the left side swept back and the right almost covering her eye.
She wears small round glasses, which could be described as her defining characteristic.
I wonder if she wears them out of fashion, since her eyes don't seem particularly bad.
She wears dark clothing that's easy to move around. However, by the quality of it, the clothing is clearly made for ceremonial occasions. Rather than a skirt, she wears pants.
Her body is bound by a robe, the kind the clergy wear, dyed black.
Though I am a fan of black myself, hers is an unnatural fascination with the color.
Her eyes, cold and cruel, display profound wisdom.
Other than the cold glare, she can only be described as beautiful