This is the final chapter before this is all caught up with my ff.net posts! Updates will drop to weekly every Friday!
Punctuation Key:
"Spoken dialogue"
'Quoting'
*Action*
Emphasis
Internal thoughts/talking to Ciel
[[Ciel talking]]
{{Thought Communication}}
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Iruma POV
The door opens and I'm greeted with a room full of women of different races, the one that answered the door being someone I recognize. It's Shuna, greeting us with a smile. The other women are smiling as well, but one person in the room isn't; Rimuru. She's standing in the middle of the circle of people, looking much different than she did when I saw her last. Rimuru is tiny again, the same size she was when we first met, but this time she's wearing something much different. She's dressed like a doll; that's the only way to describe the frilly clothing she's wearing. It's too exaggerated to be something that you'd actually have a person wear unless they were being entered into some kind of beauty pageant for little girls.
Rimuru's standing there stiffly with her small arms pinned to her sides and her hands balled into fists. She's looking down and to the side, probably trying to avoid looking me and Benimaru in the eyes. Her brows are furrowed and her cheeks pink from embarrassment while her lips are formed into a small frown.
I hear Benimaru stifle a chuckle at the sight before addressing his sister who's still standing directly in front of us.
"I see you still haven't lost your touch, Shuna." Benimaru quips amusedly, still peering at Rimuru over Shuna's shoulder while wearing a sly grin.
Shuna just nods before speaking up.
"Are you here to take Lord Rimuru somewhere?" Shuna asks, ascertaining his reason for being here.
"Yes, it's almost time for the feast celebrating his temporary return to Tempest. I came here with his guest to bring both of them to the banquet hall."
"Oh, is it already time for that, Brother? I must have lost track of time while I was spending time with Lord Rimuru!" Shuna cutely says, her pink eyes growing large with surprise. "I best be going since they will likely need my help with the food. I will see you at the feast, Brother, Lord Rimuru, and of course his guest." She says with a deep, respectful bow. She glances back at Rimuru one more time, seemingly sad to be leaving him, before leaving the room along with the other women.
It's a stark contrast from the commanding air she had about her when coercing Rimuru to leave with her earlier. I'd say dichotomy is scarier than the one I've witnessed with Rimuru, but that's hard to say since I haven't spent much time around Shuna.
Rimuru then hesitantly looks up, finally making eye contact with me, wincing as if expecting me to judge them based on their current appearance. Part of me wants to say something to get back at Rimuru for all the times she's teased me, but I bite my tongue. I know full well that any more humiliation would be nothing short of bullying. It'd be cruel for me to make fun of her right now when she's clearly already mortified by this situation. Plus, I know Rimuru would get back at me in turn later, so yeah, it's probably best for me to keep my mouth shut.
Even though I don't plan on making a scene, it seems like Benimaru might have a different idea. He steps forward, leaving me near the doorway, and approaches Rimuru. She turns her gaze to him, looking like she's bracing herself for some teasing.
Benimaru then pats Rimuru on the head, ruffling her hair a little in the process, causing Rimuru to scowl and shove his hand away from her head irritatedly.
"Ah, Shuna really does have the perfect taste when it comes to dressing you, My Lord," Benimaru says somewhat sarcastically, getting a kick out of Rimuru's reaction while looking down at her with a smirk.
"Shaddup..." Rimuru grumbles in response to Benimaru's comment while punching him lightly in the leg, causing him to chuckle slightly.
Rimuru then looks at me again, seemingly trying to read my expression. Under her discerning gaze, I turn my head to the side, trying my hardest to hide the smile that threatens to creep across my lips. The way Rimuru looks right now is pretty funny but I don't want to upset her further by saying anything. Benimaru's done that enough I think.
Seemingly seeing through my feeble attempt to hide my amusement, Rimuru rolls her eyes at me.
"If you think this is funny, you should just laugh already! I won't get mad at you, I promise."
The laughter I've been holding in the last few minutes bursts out as soon as Rimuru gave me permission. Rimuru doesn't look too happy about my reaction but doesn't say anything. Once I get it out of my system, Rimuru speaks up again.
"Ugh, this sucks...and I still have to eat Shion's cooking later too..." Rimuru complains while wearing a defeated expression.
Benimaru gives a slight smirk, one that's much more subtle than the other ones I've seen him make. Rimuru doesn't seem to have noticed, though.
"That's rough buddy," Benimaru says, giving Rimuru another head pat. I can't tell if he's actually acting sympathetically or teasing Rimuru further. The smirk I noticed makes me lean toward the latter option.
I watch Rimuru's eye twitch in irritation before reacting to Benimaru's touch.
"Seriously, Beni, stop doing that!" Rimuru protests half-laughingly, shoving Benimaru's hand away again and causing Benimaru to laugh even more.
Then, Rimuru suddenly melts into slime and reforms into human shape, now wearing the same casual outfit from before and back in her 12-year-old size. I can tell that Rimuru's feeling relieved to be out of that outfit; I know I would be if I was in her situation. I still remember the dem-dol concert and I surely felt better after getting out of that stupid dress.
Rimuru then reaches out and messes up Benimaru's hair to get revenge for him doing the same to her (now that she's tall enough to reach). Both of them laugh before calming down and getting a little more serious.
Based on the dynamic I've seen, I can believe that these two are true friends; close ones at that. Benimaru talked about not being able to act casually in public but it seems like since it's just the three of us, the true colors of his friendship with Rimuru are shining through.
"Alright, let's just teleport there to save some time. Even though we'll probably get there a bit early, I think it'll be easier than walking there." Rimuru says while gesturing for me to step closer.
Benimaru grins in agreement, also stepping slightly closer to Rimuru.
I obey and soon feel the same situation of being pulled somewhere like before. I'm glad this happened before I ate since my stomach churned in protest again from the sensation. It wasn't as bad as last time, though, so maybe I'm getting used to it? Benimaru didn't seem bothered by it, so I'm sure he is.
We find ourselves in a room that's about what I'd expect when hearing the words 'banquet hall'. There's a buzz of activity as people go about preparing for the event. Some of them stop in their tracks when they notice our arrival, but quickly get back to work after Rimuru gives them reassuring words and nods. I think they were worried that they weren't working fast enough or something, but we arrived early so you can't blame them for not being fully prepared.
I'm a little taken aback by the over-the-top sight laying in front of me, also feeling mildly intimidated by all of it. I didn't realize these people would arrange such an elaborate-looking event on the fly like this. It's not formal, but it's definitely a bit much in my opinion.
"Heh, don't worry. I made sure to urge my people to keep this dinner somewhat small. It'll mostly just be the people you've already met along with a few others; nothing too big. We're keeping it fairly casual too since that's how I prefer to do things when there aren't any people from other countries around." Rimuru says reassuringly after noticing the nervousness in my expression as I gawked at the room.
Rimuru calls this small?!
Small isn't a word I would use to describe what I'm seeing. I can't even imagine the kinds of celebrations they've had in the past if something like this is considered small in comparison. I'm not used to big events or anything, though, so maybe my perspective is a little skewed. I have to remember, Rimuru is an important figure here, a type of celebrity with lots of power and influence. So it makes sense that large events would be something normal for her to attend. It's hard to keep that in mind since I've been with Rimuru for the last few months in a place completely separate from her reputation and responsibilities. I see Rimuru as a normal person, at least, for the most part, so thinking of her as a person with high social status is a little difficult for me.
Rimuru POV
I'm glad to have escaped Shuna's grasp but things definitely didn't go quite to plan. I'm not thrilled that Iruma saw me in that state; especially since he was with Benimaru. But, it's all over with now. I was honestly surprised that Iruma didn't say much when he saw me in that dress, but I'm not upset that he kept his mouth shut. Maybe he really took that warning not to say something that could be construed as offensive to me while he's here to heart? He can be very cautious in certain situations, so I'd guess that's the reason he didn't make fun of me. Benimaru didn't hold back though, making me look like a fool. The man's super capable but damn does he have a mean streak to his sense of humor. I wonder where he got it?
[[...]]
I get the feeling that Ciel was about to say something snarky.
Don't you dare say he got it from me, Ciel!
[[I never said anything along those lines, Master...]]
Ciel's playing innocent, but I'm sure she was holding back saying exactly that.
[[...but I cannot deny the possibility of that being the case.]]
And there it is...I can't exactly deny it either, though, since I've picked up some habits from him as well, along with some of the other Tempestians I'm close with. For one, I've gained a taste for fighting that I didn't start out with, having been a human living in peaceful Japan in my past life, although I'm not completely sure if that comes from my monstrous physiology or the influence of my friends. I actually have some self-restraint, though, unlike some of the battle-hungry maniacs that serve under me, so it's not too much of a problem. It doesn't tend to cloud my judgment, for one, so it's not a change I let bother me.
But, now I get to enjoy a decent meal. I didn't ask what was being made for tonight, kinda wanting it to be a surprise, but with me having been gone for a while, it will likely involve some of my favorite foods. That's what normally happens when parties like this are thrown without me specifically asking for certain foods and I don't see how this specific instance would end up any different. The chefs are always eager to please me (just like most of the people around here), often wanting to personally witness my reaction to their dishes when it's appropriate for them to do so.
After teleporting to the banquet hall, I notice that Iruma has the 'deer in the headlights' expression on his face, seemingly overwhelmed by all the activity around us. So, I give him a reassuring pat on the back to ease his nerves a little.
I make my way over to the seat I'm almost always assigned when attending things like this and sit down with Iruma right next to me and Benimaru on my other side. The boy awkwardly seats himself at the table, not looking too comfortable with the situation, but I also see a small glint of excitement in his eyes. I know Iruma loves to eat, so I'm sure he'll enjoy whatever ends up on our plates.
(AN: I'm horrible at describing food so don't expect me to get very specific.)
Just as I predicted, the spread was impressive. Japanese-inspired and delicious as always. Iruma sure seems to be enjoying himself, piling large amounts of practically everything on his plate and shoveling it down with gusto. He barely spoke, his mouth being almost constantly full of food. I'm sure his nervousness also contributed to his quietness, but either way, I can tell that he's loving the food.
I decided that having a little drink wouldn't do any harm, especially since it's been a few months since I've had even a drop of alcohol in my system. Using that trick Luminous taught me a while back, I turn down my poison resistance so I can fully enjoy the experience.
[[Master, are you sure that is a good idea? What about-]]
Don't worry Ciel! I won't get too intoxicated around Iruma, I can be a responsible adult, I promise!
[[That is not what I am tal-]]
Seriously Ciel, just let me enjoy myself, alright?
[[...]]
Ciel hates it when I get drunk and here she is again, being a total party-pooper. I know my limits and I won't go past them, I've learned that the hard way in the past. Getting a little buzzed won't do me any harm.
Iruma POV
The table I'm sitting at quickly fills with people, some of them I easily recognize from earlier today, among others I don't. After everyone is seated, the food is brought out and I recognize many of the foods since they're clearly Japanese, or at least inspired by the real thing. It's been a good amount of time since I've had anything like this, having been in the Netherworld, even if Grandpa tried to replicate some of the recipes based on my descriptions.
I ended up trying many different things, enjoying all of them. They were all mouth-wateringly delicious and I ended up eating a massive amount. Rimuru did much of the same, but she also drank something while eating. Just by the smell, I can tell it's alcoholic, and based on her behavior and flushed cheeks, Rimuru's definitely gotten a bit drunk throughout the meal.
Now that everyone is done eating, the couple of dozen attendees are standing around the room chatting, some of them still drinking. Rimuru is chatting with Benimaru, Gabiru, and Veldora. Veldora seems to have recovered from his injuries in the short amount of time since I last saw him.
Veldora is talking the loudest out of the group, but Rimuru isn't far behind him in volume. Due to being intoxicated, I think, she's talking much louder than normal and has a slight slurring to her words. Benimaru and the others around Rimuru seem to be egging her on into drinking more than she initially intended, which makes me a little worried.
"Rimuru, I'm not trying to be rude, but should you be drinking that much?" I timidly ask as Rimuru takes another swig out of her freshly filled glass. I don't know much about drinking, being too young to do it myself, but I'm getting the feeling that Rimuru needs to slow down.
"Hahaha...you sound just like Ciel! She never wants me to have any fun!" Rimuru says while laughing more than she should be, her words slightly slurred from drunkenness. "I'm fine, kid...I know when to stop..."
"Yeah, Lord Rimuru knows what he's doing! You don't need to worry about him, Iruma." Benimaru responds, also sounding a little intoxicated.
In response to Benimaru's encouragement, Rimuru goes to take another swig of her drink, but before the cup reaches her lips, something goes wrong. I watch the skin of her hand that's holding the cup turn blue-ish and the fingers themselves lose form, reverting to slime. This causes the glass to slip out and crash to the floor, sending glass shards in every direction and spilling its contents.
"Hahaha...whoops..." Rimuru says, once again laughing more than she probably should be in this situation. Benimaru, Gabiru, and Veldora join Rimuru in the laughter, not taking the accident at all seriously.
Her hand almost immediately returned back to human form, but it's definitely concerning that Rimuru just lost control of their body for a moment.
Some of the staff members immediately come over to help clean up the mess, but they're not the only people spurred into action by the accident.
Shuna, who's standing just a short distance away scowls in disapproval before coming over. Before she reaches them, Rimuru gestures to one of the nearby servers to bring her another drink to replace the one that spilled. But, before Rimuru can grab the glass from the server's hand, Shuna beats them to it.
"No more," Shuna says sternly, scowling again, her pink eyes flaming with anger. "Same for you, Brother. Both of you have had enough!" she chastises Benimaru, snatching his glass from him as well before handing both to the same server that brought the drink to Rimuru. The poor guy looks torn, probably since Rimuru is technically above Shuna in the hierarchy of Tempest, but Shuna means business right now and isn't gonna take no for an answer. They end up following the oni woman's orders despite Rimuru very clearly not wanting the drink to be taken away.
Both Benimaru and Rimuru mutter some complaints but don't put up much of a fight against Shuna. Gabiru, and Veldora especially, think this situation is even funnier than Rimuru dropping the glass, teasing Benimaru for always giving in to his little sister's demands.
Still worried about Rimuru, I walk up to a still upset-looking Shuna who's now conversing with some of the women at the party.
"Shuna?"
"Yes, Iruma? Did you need something?"
"I'm worried about Rimuru...did you see what happened right before he dropped that glass a minute ago?" I ask, making sure to use male pronouns when referring to Rimuru.
"No, I did not. The sound of the glass shattering was what grabbed my attention."
"Their hand...it...it turned back into slime. I know that Rimuru only mimics a human body and it's almost like he lost control for a moment. Has that ever happened before?"
Shuna hesitates for a moment, thinking about what I just said.
"Only when he's passed out from exhaustion, but never from drinking..." Shuna says, trailing off into thought and looking a little concerned herself. She quickly hides it with a smile, though, when she notices that I'm getting even more worried from her reaction. "Don't you worry, though, Lord Rimuru has stopped drinking now, so I'm sure he will be just fine," Shuna says while patting me on the top of my head in a comforting way, causing my face to turn hot. Despite being a little scary, Shuna is a very pretty woman, so I can't help feeling embarrassed when she touches me like this. She seems to get some amusement out of my reaction, making the awkwardness I'm feeling even worse.
"Heehee, I'm glad Lord Rimuru has made such a good friend. You are a nice boy, Iruma. Try to keep our beloved leader out of trouble when you two return after his visit here." Shuna says sweetly before turning her attention back to the conversation I interrupted.
The party continues with me mostly wandering around aimlessly, trying to occupy my time. I don't know anyone except for Rimuru very well and I don't want to be rude by butting into anyone's conversations. Rimuru has kept busy the entire time, even singing karaoke with their buddies. I think it was Gabiru's idea, based on the amount of enthusiasm he showed while singing. He even had three other dragonnewts with him acting as backup singers, putting on quite a show for everyone attending the party.
Late to the event, Diablo shows up with Grandpa in tow, but I'm thrown off by the state he's in. Grandpa's injured, much in the same way Veldora was earlier.
"Grandpa!" I call out to him, happy to see him again but also concerned.
He embraces me.
"Did you have fun today my sweet little nugget of a grandson?" He asks warmly.
"Yes, I did! But...why are you hurt?"
"Oh, I decided to get a little exercise in that wonderful labyrinth this Tempest place has. Diablo here showed me it and it's quite the thrilling attraction! I haven't flexed my fighting prowess in a long time so it was nice to go all out once again."
Diablo has a large, evil-looking grin on his face that tells me he enjoyed himself as well.
I remember how those two demon girls went there earlier to fight, so I guess that's the point of it? It's kinda weird to have a whole big maze thing just for sparring matches...maybe it has other purposes too? That's another question to ask Rimuru later.
Just then, the temperature in the room drops; not literally, but everyone hesitates and the mood changes as a certain someone enters the room. It's Shion; she's carrying...something...on a platter and seems to be walking in Rimuru's direction. Everyone looks on in horror as the purple-haired woman crosses the room, almost skipping with glee and humming to herself cheerfully.
I watch Rimuru stop as well, no longer jovially laughing with their friends like they were a mere moment ago. Rimuru's shoulders slump and she sighs.
I've seen some weird foods in the Netherworld, but whatever that is is something completely different. She was supposed to be making a cake, I thought, but that lump on her platter doesn't resemble anything even close to that.
Still, I love eating pretty much anything and I've learned that looks can be deceiving, so maybe I should give it a try? It's not like it's poisonous or anything! In the worst-case scenario, I can just spit it out.
Rimuru makes her way back to her spot at the table, Shion following closely behind. Once Rimuru's seated, Shion plops the platter right in front of her.
Noticing my staring, Rimuru says something.
"So you wanna give it a try, Iruma? I know it looks a bit rough, but it should taste just fine; great in fact." Rimuru says to me before turning her attention to Shion who's standing expectantly behind her. "Is it alright with you if I share with my friend, Shion?"
"Yes, of course, My Lord!" Shion says with an enthusiastic nod.
I join Rimuru at the table. The 'cake' definitely looks strange, but if Rimuru says it tastes good, I'll believe her. So, a slice was cut for me, as well as for Rimuru. The inside resembles cake just as much as the outside, and by that, I mean not at all. A pasty almost gelatinous texture; that's what I see when I look at this supposed cake.
"By the way, Lord Rimuru, for this special occasion I decided to make this cake 'all natural'," Shion says gleefully.
"Uh-huh..." Rimuru says, closing her eyes as she begins to bring a bite to her mouth. "Wait, what d'you mean by that?" Rimuru asks before tasting her first bite, her eyes opening in surprise.
I follow suit and take my fork in my hand, scoop a small piece of 'cake' onto it and begin to raise it towards my mouth.
"I decided to try baking again without my skill. I've been practicing so hard while you were gone!"
I'm confused by what Shion means by that but decided that it doesn't matter. I continue to take my first bite, but just as I'm about to insert the fork into my mouth, I feel a tugging sensation between my fingers and hear a metallic twang noise off to the side and behind me.
I look at my hand and find that my fork has disappeared. Still very confused by what just happened, I turn my head towards the source of the strange noise, just to find my fork pinned against the wall by another. I then look back at Rimuru, whose arm is outstretched like she just threw something.
It takes me a moment to put the pieces together, but I realize that Rimuru threw her fork to knock mine out of my hand for some reason. The panicked expression she's wearing means whatever her reason was, it's something serious.
"Whew...that was close..." Rimuru says, wiping sweat off her brow and slumping in her chair in relief.
"Wh-why did you do that?!" I ask, still in shock at what just happened.
"You don't need to know...just...just don't eat that cake, alright? It's for the best, trust me..." Rimuru says while pulling the plate in front of me away. "I'll...handle this..." Rimuru says shakily, wearing a forced smile as she (much more hesitantly this time) brings a forkful of 'cake' to her mouth. I'm not sure where she got another fork from, but whatever.
Shion is still standing nearby expectantly, a large, innocent-looking smile peeling across her face as she watches Rimuru try the dish.
Rimuru gulps nervously before inserting the bite into her mouth and I watch her grimace as soon as it's inside. Then, Rimuru's face turns to shades of purple and she begins to wobble in her chair. I notice multiple parts of her body begin to melt, much like earlier, and her fork clatters to the table below. I've watched Rimuru transform before a couple of times, but this time it's different, looking more like a wax statue melting in the sun than the quick, smooth process that normally happens. Once she reaches a certain point, Rimuru sways to the side and falls out of her chair.
"Oh, shiiiiii...." Rimuru mumbles as she passes out, going full slime mode by the time she hits the floor.
Rimuru POV
After the near-disaster of Iruma almost eating Shion's cooking (without using her master chef skill), I'm now tasked with eating it myself. I'm glad I'm still a little drunk since that will dull the experience. I haven't eaten Shion's un-modified cooking in quite a while and I'm not exactly thrilled to do so. Who the hell gave her that horrible idea anyway?! She's got an amazing skill gifted by my evolution into a True Demon Lord, so why is she reverting back to her old ways again?! It doesn't make sense, so someone must've told her to do this, that's the only reasonable explanation.
So, I brace myself for the horrifying experience I'm about to endure, bringing the forkful of death close to my lips. I gulp before placing it into my mouth, hoping it isn't as bad as I expect. As soon as it makes contact with my tastebuds, I experience instant regret. It's so bad that I can't even describe it in words. I can't even fully comprehend the experience before my vision begins to blur and my grasp on my human mimic slips. I drop my fork for one and start to lose my balance.
What's...happening?... Ciel?
[[Your poison resistance was still repressed by your effort to become intoxicated, Master. I tried to warn you of this potential consequence earlier, but you did not listen!]]
Please...just turn it back on...alright?... I'm...sorry...
[[Activating emergency measures...partially successful. Sleep mode will be engaged for one hour to fully recover.]]
Ciel! I know...you...can...do...be-better...th-than-n...
I can't seem to come up with the words, even within my thoughts, with how fogged my mind feels.
"Oh, shiiiiii...." I say out loud as I feel myself begin to plummet to the floor, the last thing I see before slipping into unconsciousness is Iruma's worried face looking down on me.