〆 𝖆 𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖒𝖎𝖘𝖊𝖉 𝖘𝖑𝖎𝖒𝖊 𝖎𝖓 𝖓𝖊𝖛𝖊𝖗𝖑𝖆𝖓𝖉 〆 ᵗᵖⁿ ⁺ ᵗᵗⁱᵍʳᵃᵃˢ

III. Information

"What can you tell us about the lands around the plantations?" Souei inquired.

"Nothing. I've never been outside the plantations or headquarters."

"Do any of them have any defences?" he asked, guessing that his lord would wish to move against these demons eventually.

"They do have security guards, especially at headquarters. There aren't many guards around the plantations, though, as they mostly rely on the tracking devices imbedded in each of the children to tell them where they are. However, since our liberation, I can't vouch that my information is still accurate."

"Are you willing to share what you do know about the operation of the plantations and the headquarters?" Rimuru added. "Including the layouts?"

She answered without hesitation and with a hint of satisfaction in her voice. "I'll tell you everything I know."

"Lord Rimuru, what are you planning?" Shion cut in.

Rimuru looked down for a moment. "I can't sit back and do nothing while there are children waiting to be fed to demons. We need to start making plans to infiltrate those other plantations, and rescue the other children."

"How?" Rigurd wondered. "Miss Krone here admits that she knows nothing about the other plantations, or how to get to them."

"Then we'll just have to find out for ourselves," Rimuru looked up. "Once Milim gets back, send her to me. We'll need her help since she's the only one who can open a portal to their world. We'll start making preparations, but for now, we have 30 scared children to take care of, which leads to my next question," He looked back at Krone. "Tell me, Miss Krone; can I trust you?"

She looked startled for a moment, but then smiled. "I promise you I will tell you everything I know about..."

"I'm not talking about that," He interrupted her. "I'm talking about the children. Can I trust you with them?"

She looked back at him with a puzzled expression. "I'm not sure what you mean?"

Rimuru sat back in his chair, and looked her dead in the eye. "Because you are going to be the children's new... mom, as you call it."

"Lord Rimuru, are you sure about that?" Benimaru interjected.

The others looked just as dubious, though they stayed silent, and Rimuru couldn't really fault them for it. From what Krone had told them, and the lack of empathy she had shown when talking about her duties, and her willingness to send children to their deaths to save her own life, he couldn't blame them for thinking that she shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the children. Assigning her as their caretaker must seem like a horrible idea.

Rimuru held up his hand to quiet them. "Honestly, I'd be lying if I said I didn't have reservations about letting a woman who admitted to being willing to send little kids off to be some demon's banquet, be those kids' caretaker. But what we have to remember is that she comes from a very different world; one where humans are treated like cattle, and there was no chance of escape. How desperate would any of us be in her place, knowing that she could be killed at any moment, and the only way to stay alive was to bow and scrape to the demons? I can't even begin to imagine what her life was like," He focused on Krone. "That's the only reason I'm willing to give you a chance and let slide what you said you would do if you had been made a mom in that world!" He said the last part with a stern tone, eyeing her dangerously.

Krone said nothing, merely waiting with a stoic expression.

Rimuru sighed. "But since you were never made a mom, and even helped these children escape, I'd say you deserve a chance, so I'm granting you probation."

'Probation?' Krone wondered, but stayed silent.

"Even so..." Souei started, but Rimuru interrupted him.

"Guys, we have 30 scared kids out there. They're strangers in a strange world they know nothing about, filled with creatures they have never even imagined of. Krone is the only adult who they all know and apparently trust. They don't know any of us. Plus, Krone says she's been trained to be a mom most of her life, so she is the best person for the job."

Hope began to grow in Krone's heart, and she even allowed herself a smile. That smile fell away, though, at Rimuru's next words.

"However," he said, staring hard at her, "while you will be the children's caretaker here, you will also be supervised. There will always be someone nearby to keep an eye on you and make sure that the children are all in good health. As long as they are, there will be nothing to worry about," His face and tone darkened. "But if I find that any of those kids have been mistreated in any way, or that you've lied to us about your past or your intentions..." As he spoke, his shadow seemed to come alive, as a huge shape grew out of it and took on the form of the massive wolf from earlier. Rimuru petted the direwolf's leg, as he was too big for him to reach his head. "... Then Ranga here will have found a new chew-toy."

The blood drained from Krone's face, as she stared up at the snarling wolf in front of her. It was definitely the same wolf she had seen playing with the children earlier, but it was now at least twice the size it had been before, and it didn't look nearly as friendly.

"I trust we have an understanding, Miss Krone?" Rimuru rose to his feet, and held out his hand for her to shake.

Krone swallowed the lump in her throat, ruthlessly shoving down her nervousness, and smiled back as she took the slime's hand and shook it. "We do, Lord Rimuru. I look forward to proving myself to you."

"Excellent! Now, let's go see how our young charges are doing."