Punctuation Key:
"Spoken dialogue"
'Quoting'
*Action*
Emphasis
Internal thoughts/talking to Ciel
[[Ciel talking]]
{{Thought Communication}}
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Iruma POV
Walpurgis is apparently scheduled pretty early in the morning since stuff like this normally goes on for a full day according to Rimuru. This means we have to leave for Tempest the night before. It's just Rimuru and me leaving this time since Grandpa has some work he needs to do for the school. He seemed a little worried about letting me go alone, but since he can't go to Walpurgis anyway, there's not much point in him coming with us. Opera seemed even more worried, but Rimuru (unsuccessfully) reassured him that I will be perfectly safe.
I'm a little apprehensive myself, but I've already agreed so there's no going back. Rimuru has kept me safe so far (despite being scary sometimes) so I'll just have to accept that she'll continue to do that.
Rimuru opens a gate to Tempest again, leaving behind a sullen-looking Diablo. He nearly cried when Rimuru told him to stay behind. I feel a little bad for him.
I follow Rimuru through the gate, kinda expecting to end up in Rimuru's office again, but I end up being wrong. I find myself in one of the training rooms in the Labyrinth, at least that's what I think this place is. It pretty much looks the same as the one I went to with Gobta and Hakurou during my last visit.
"What are we doing here Rimuru? Isn't this one of those training rooms in the Labyrinth?"
"Oh, you've been here before? I guess I should've known after seeing that bracelet on your wrist."
I look down at my arm and see the resurrection bracelet I was given. I never bothered to take it off since receiving it.
"Yeah. Gobta and I trained with Hakurou."
Rimuru's eyes widen slightly before her expression morphs into one of concern.
"You didn't get hurt, did you?" Rimuru asks in a serious tone.
"A little, but Gobta gave me a potion so I was fine."
"That's good."
I decide not to mention the part where Gobta died in front of me and how scared I got. Rimuru is upset with Gobta already and I don't want to make things worse.
"Well...I should probably tell you why we're here. I'm sure you're curious."
"Yes...what are we doing here? I thought we had to prepare for that Demon Lord meeting."
"We are, we are; just hold your horses...I thought you could use a little 'confidence-booster' before tomorrow." Rimuru says, grinning at me.
Confidence booster?
Part of me doesn't like that smile Rimuru is wearing. That expression normally means she's up to no good.
"Remember when you shot that magic bullet at me on stage? I thought we could have you work on that little ability some."
I remember that incident and the sinking feeling I got in my stomach when I saw that thing punch through the wall behind Rimuru. I made something truly dangerous and I'm not exactly thrilled to do the same thing again. It doesn't seem like something I should be able to do if it can potentially kill people as Rimuru said before.
"Don't worry about the danger of it. The Labyrinth is sturdy and safe so it's a good place to try out new abilities and stuff. And it's not like it can injure me either. Projectiles are something that I'm near-immune to; I can just eat anything that people throw at me."
"You can just...eat it?"
"Yeah...remember that annoying dude that threw magic at me while we were walking with Shion?"
"The one you described as that Ultima girl's 'toy' while we were at that place with the elf ladies?"
"Hey, I just said that to scare Gobta! Also, I think I remember telling you that all that never happened."
"Oh yeah...sorry..."
"You're right though; that guy. He shot a projectile at me and I absorbed it. If he can't get me with something like that, there's no way you could, so don't worry about hurting me, alright?"
"I'll try not to."
Rimuru pauses, biting the tip of her thumb while thinking for a moment before continuing.
"Do you remember the feeling you had when forming the magic bullet?" She asks, looking at me again.
"I think so."
"Go ahead and try to do the same thing again. Here; I'll give you a little example to work off of."
Rimuru raises her hand flat as if balancing a plate on it and in a mere instant, a ball forms much like the one I used before. There are some differences though; I remember that the one I made was more ragged and less stable maybe? It's hard for me to describe since I don't understand much about magic like this.
Close my eyes and try to remember the feeling as clearly as possible: that warmth forming in my right hand, the one with the Gluttonous Feeder ring on it.
It takes me a minute, but I manage to replicate what I did back then. I experience the same warm feeling as before and open my eyes; sitting in my palm is the same light blue ball of magical energy; a 'magic bullet' as Rimuru called it.
It scares me, holding something like this again. I know that it can do some serious damage.
"Good, good. Now try to refine it a little before throwing it at me. Yours is very rough and inefficient right now."
Rimuru's right, I think. Compared to her perfectly smooth bullet, mine is just as unrefined as the first time I tried this.
"H-how though?"
"Focus. Focus harder on controlling the magic. You already have the basics down, but something that unstable is dangerous to the user too, so I won't let you use this outside of the Labyrinth unless you can make it safer." Rimuru says as their magic vanishes into the palm of her hand.
Focus...focus on controlling it...
I try my best to focus, but I'm very nervous right now and it's making it hard for me to do that. My hand is shaking as I stare at the magic orb resting on it. As my heart races faster, it seems to become even more jagged and unstable. Fluctuating in brightness, size, and shape, I know that I'm losing control of it.
"Iruma! Don't be scared, just focus! I'm right here and I won't let anything go seriously wrong!"
"B-but..."
"Relax! I wouldn't be letting you try this if I didn't think you were capable!"
Yes...Rimuru believes in me...if I could calm myself while facing Kiriwo, I can do the same here. Even if I get hurt, Rimuru could heal me. I don't have to be scared by this...
As I manage to calm myself, my magic begins to form properly, becoming closer in shape to a sphere than before. Rimuru, seeing this, smiles warmly at me.
"You're doing great! Now throw it at me, just like you did before. It doesn't matter if you miss, just throw it!" she says encouragingly.
I do what Rimuru says. I first reel back and whip my arm forward, throwing the baseball-sized ball of light at Rimuru. It veers to the side some but otherwise went where I wanted it to. Rimuru held their hand out and sucked it into her palm with a small dark swirl and smiled again.
"Do it again, Iruma. That was already an improvement." Rimuru commands.
I continue to practice for a while with Rimuru. Each time I get a little better at forming the magic bullet, faster and better at shaping it. I still can't throw properly, but that was something I already expected. At a close range, though, I can consistently hit Rimuru with my magic, or at least I would hit my mark if Rimuru didn't keep absorbing everything I throw at them.
By the end, I'm pretty tuckered out by the exercise. My right arm and shoulder are pretty sore from repeatedly throwing magic bullets at Rimuru. My body is tired overall as well just like any other time I've used magic. I was only using the 'normal' setting the entire time, but using magic over and over for what felt like a long amount of time still wore on me. I think I've gotten more tolerant of using skills and magic though, having practiced with Rimuru on a somewhat regular basis. She said that it would be easier for me the more I use it and I'm starting to see the results of that.
"That's enough for today. I'm glad I could show you something you could use to defend yourself in a pinch. They don't teach any attack-type magics at Babyls to first-years, but I don't feel comfortable with you not knowing at least one thing like that."
"Yeah, thank you Rimuru. I hope I don't ever need to use it though." I respond. I don't want to hurt anyone unless I have to, but I agree that having something I can use if I'm in danger when Rimuru isn't nearby is a good thing.
"I hope not too, but you never know. Oh, and don't shoot that at any of the other Demon Lords tomorrow. It wouldn't do anything outside of pissing them off. Some of them might just laugh it off, but others...yeah no...just don't."
"I wouldn't even think about doing that!" I sputter, the thought never even crossing my mind until Rimuru mentioned it. I know I don't always make the best decisions, but attacking a Demon Lord? I'm nowhere near that level of stupid!
"I thought so, but I wanted to make that crystal clear anyways...do you wanna get something to eat? I bet you worked up an appetite doing all that."
"Yes!" I reply excitedly. The food here is very good and Rimuru's right about me having worked up an appetite, not that it takes much to do that.
"Hmmm...I suppose we should just go to the dining hall this time..." Rimuru says to herself. "I'm guessing you'd prefer to walk there again, am I right?"
I nod my head.
"Figures...sure we can walk a little. I thought since you're tired that you wouldn't want to, but oh well..." Rimuru says with a defeated shrug.
I follow Rimuru toward the Labyrinth's exit.
"Oh, wait a sec..." Rimuru says.
Rimuru turns into their light blue slime form for a moment before returning to her human one. Rimuru changed into that cool black outfit I've seen her wear a few times. After a moment, she also seemed to stand up a little straighter and put on a more serious face. More confident and less approachable.
I look at Rimuru, slightly confused by their change in demeanor. When Rimuru sees my expression, they speak up.
"I need to look capable as we pass through this place. The Dungeon tends to attract the same type of people that cause me trouble if I don't look like the leader I am." Rimuru explains. "I'm not exactly 'imposing' most of the time since that's not really my style, so I get it, but I'd rather not deal with any...uh, how do I put it nicely...? Well, whatever...I'm sure you get my point."
"I'm a little surprised that's a problem; most of the people here seem to respect you," I comment.
"Tempestians do, but that doesn't mean that visitors have the same opinion of me. Usually, the 'Demon Lord' title is enough to keep people civil, but sometimes that's not the case."
As we walk down the hallway, I try to mimic Rimuru's 'confident walk'. I need to pretend to be them tomorrow, so a little practice won't hurt. Seeing this, Rimuru laughs a little, shattering the stoic act she was putting on.
"Pfft...hahaha, nice try Iruma, but save that performance for Walpurgis!" Rimuru chuckles, giving me a playful slap on the back.
"I-I wasn't trying to be funny..." I stutter, a little embarrassed that Rimuru is snickering at my honest attempt.
"It was only funny because I wasn't expecting it!" Rimuru continues.
"But...if it's bad enough to make you laugh...what if the other Demon Lords...?"
"Just try your best tomorrow. Don't dwell on it too much."
After the hallway, we pass through the lobby area. Just like last time, the place is filled with people wearing armor and carrying weapons. This time, though, we seem to grab more attention than I did with Gobta and Hakurou.
"Hey, isn't that-?" one person asks, staring at Rimuru.
"I think so..." another mutters.
"Don't get in his way, man!" a third person shouts, pulling a fourth out of our path.
Many similar things come out of people's mouths, but I try not to pay much attention to them. The sheer number of people is much more than last time and it's making me nervous. But, still, people seem to be keeping a respectful distance so it's not as bad as it could be.
I guess Rimuru's 'acting' is working.
Nobody seems like they will bother us, some of them look a little scared while others just stare at Rimuru with shocked expressions. Rimuru gives a few waves to the few that greet her from a distance, but other than that, we get through the crowded lobby without much interaction with other people.
We exit and walk down the street for a few minutes. It doesn't take long to reach the dining hall Rimuru talked about. It's not very full, probably since it seems to be a little late for dinner right now based on how dark it is.
Once we're inside, Rimuru looks up at the board posted on the wall. It seems to be handwritten, possibly some sort of chalkboard(?) Whatever it is, it's not anything I can read. Unlike the permanent signs, there is no Japanese translation on this thing.
"What d'you want?" Rimuru asks, pointing to the board.
"I...um...I can't read it..."
"Oh yeah...sorry. I'll just get you the same thing that I'm having. I could tell you the options, but why not have it be a little surprise?"
Rimuru walks up to a nearby counter with stacks of thin, small, wooden boards. They grab two from a stack and hand one to me. It also has some of that writing that I can't understand engraved into it.
Gesturing for me to follow, Rimuru steps up to the counter. There wasn't much of a line since it's kinda late, but the person that Rimuru stepped behind pretty much begged Rimuru to cut in front of them. Rimuru waved them off, insisting that waiting a few minutes isn't something that bothers her.
Once we get our food, we go to sit down at one of the tables. Rimuru got a weird look from the guy who handed the bowls to us, although he quickly hid it with a smile.
"Is this not something you normally do?" I ask.
"I usually have my food brought to my office."
"Why didn't we just eat in your office then?"
"I'm gonna be spending most of the night there doing work. I'd like to avoid it until I have to."
I go to take my first bite. It seems to be some type of hot pot with crab(?) chunks in it. The pieces are awful big to be crab, though, so maybe it's from a crab monster of some kind. I have no clue. It tastes good though, so I don't think about it too much.
"Do you like it?"
"Mhm." I hum through my full mouth.
"I thought you'd like knight spider soup!" Rimuru responds.
I nearly spit out my food, but stop myself and force a swallow.
"Sp-spider?!"
"Yeah," Rimuru says while slurping up a spoonful of what I now know is spider flesh. "Don't tell me that ~bothers you~?" Rimuru says, grinning at me mischievously.
I stare at my food, the pleasant smell wafting into my nose. It does taste amazing, so why should I care much about what it is?
"After all that weird shit that people in the Netherworld eat, I'm surprised that you're bugged by this of all things."
Why am I bothered by this? Rimuru's right, I've eaten much weirder things...
I take another, more hesitant, bite and enjoy it just as much as I did before realizing what kind of meat is in it.
"Oh, so you still like it then? That's good; this is a Tempest classic. We don't eat it as much anymore since the forest has been tamed but the occasional beast still pops up sometimes."
"So that's where this came from? A monster?"
Rimuru nods.
"As long as it's edible, the security patrols that dispatch dangerous creatures bring the bodies back and we make use of them. Knight spider, in particular, is a bit of a treat compared to the normal fare, but whatever the chefs make, it's always good." Rimuru continues before taking another bite.
I continue eating, now not as bothered by the source of my food. I would feel bad if this bowl went to waste after someone went to the trouble of preparing it.
It doesn't take long before both of us have emptied our bowls. I start to get sleepy from the pleasant warmth of the food inside me.
"Rimuru...?"
"Oh, you're tired, aren't you? Lemme get you to that guest room again."
But before we can leave...
"Rimuruuuuu!" A loud booming voice calls out from behind.
Veldora runs up and hugs Rimuru from behind and I hear cracking noises coming from Rimuru's chair. It seems that Veldora's hug is strong enough to break it, making me grateful he's hugging Rimuru instead of me.
"What's up Veldora...?" Rimuru mutters, not sounding too thrilled to see him.
"Can I go with you?!" Velora asks excitedly.
"Be more specific," Rimuru responds bluntly.
"To Walpurgis! Don't you want the Great Storm Dragon at your side for such an occasion! I heard that you have something special planned this time!" He shouts.
"No, Veldora. I'm not bringing anyone but Iruma with me."
"B-but...I have to..."
Rimuru raises a questioning eyebrow at him.
"Now I'm glad I said no right off the bat. You're up to something, aren't you?"
"No! Nothing like that, Rimuru!"
"Either way, you're still not coming with me."
"C'mon Rimuru! Lemme come too!"
"No means no."
Veldora backs off, looking disappointed, and leaves while wearing a pout. He even glanced back over his shoulder as he exited, looking at Rimuru with begging eyes but she didn't give in to his wishes.
"Why can't he come with us?" I ask, genuinely confused why Rimuru is so insistent on leaving Veldora behind.
"Because he'll probably cause trouble. Plus, it'll piss off Luminous if he's there. They have an 'interesting history'."
"What did he do to her?"
"Burned down her city, among other few things. It's best not to have those two interact with each other."
"B-burned down her city?!" I ask, shocked that Veldora would do something so horrible.
"Mhm. It was a long time ago, but that doesn't mean she's forgiven him yet."
"Maybe he should just stay behind..."
"Yup. Now let's get you to bed. It's pretty late."
This time teleporting, Rimuru takes me to the same guest room that I used last week. Before leaving, Rimuru wishes me a good night and leaves to do whatever work she has to do. I feel a little bad for Rimuru since she seems to have a lot of work to do over the last week. I guess that comes with their position, but skipping out on sleep to finish it is still something that I don't think anyone should have to do, even if they don't really need to sleep every night as I do.
Now alone, I quickly get ready for bed and lay down to sleep. Unfortunately, as soon as I get settled, the sleepiness I was experiencing seems to fade away. My head is buzzing with thoughts about tomorrow. A mix of excitement and fear about Walpurgis and reluctance to sleep because of the strange dream I had the other night.
What if the same thing happens again?
I still can't recall exactly what happened in that dream, but the feeling I experienced is crystal clear. It's not something I want to repeat.
I need to sleep; I need to be well-rested and mentally sharp for tomorrow's meeting. I'll be dealing with Demon Lords and pretending to be someone I'm not. I'm definitely not a good actor, so it won't be something easy.
I need to sleep...I need to sleep...if I don't get enough sleep, things will go horribly wrong tomorrow!
Tossing and turning, trying to get drowsy but failing. I'm tired, I know that, but I can't seem to get sleepy enough to drift off!
It takes what felt like hours for me to finally start to empty my mind of the worries that were keeping me wide awake, which allows me to finally get sleepy.
"Hey! Iruma! Wake up!"
I'm momentarily confused since I don't feel like any time passed between me managing to relax and the sound of Rimuru's voice waking me up. I groggily open my eyes, finding my surroundings still dark. I rub my eyes to get rid of their blurriness and find Rimuru staring at me.
"Wha-?" I mumble.
"Let's go; Walpurgis is soon and we have to go get ready for it!"
"What...what time is it...Rimuru...? I don't feel like I slept at all..." I mutter blearily, still not fully awake.
"That sucks, sorry you didn't sleep well. Let me see...hmmm, it's a little after 5 am?"
"Why are you waking me up so early?"
"Because I need some time to get you prepared! Now get up already! Daylight's a burnin'!" Rimuru says energetically.
"There isn't any daylight yet Rimuru! It's still pitch black out there!" I whine, pointing to the window revealing that it still looks like night.
"Oh...yeah...we need to get going anyway, though." Rimuru chuckles.
Rimuru extends her hand to help me up and I take it. With a quick tug, I'm out of bed. Rimuru steps back outside to wait for me to change out of my pajamas. Once I'm ready, I follow Rimuru out and we make our way outside.
We end up in the same place I found Rimuru with Shuna when I was with Benimaru. Entering without knocking, Rimuru leads me inside and I follow behind closely. I'm really curious about what Shuna made for me to wear, but also a little nervous. Rimuru said it will be cool though, so I'm more excited than anything.
Shuna walks up to us with a small, proud smile on her lips. She's cradling a pile of black, folded clothing in her arms.
"I've finished, Lord Rimuru!" Shuna says gleefully.
"Thanks again Shuna. Sorry for the short notice; I bet you were working on that all night so take the day off and rest."
"Don't worry about me, I am not at all tired."
"No, I'm ordering you to take a rest once we're done here. I feel bad for not giving you much time to finish, so go take a dip in the hot springs or something. I don't want to overwork you, especially since you've been helping with the paperwork I normally do since I've been away."
"I assure you that I am perfectly fine."
"Shuna...please just take a break. I can tell you're tired and I care about your wellbeing."
Shuna blushes a little.
"Can I at least see how it looks on Iruma first? I may need to make some adjustments."
"Sure, Shuna, but after that take a break. That's an order!" Rimuru commands in a not-so-serious tone, waggling their index finger at Shuna and smiling.
"I promise I will," Shuna responds, bowing respectfully.
I unfold the mostly black pile of fabric in my arms. There is also a pair of similarly colored boots included.
"Isn't this...?" I ask as I unfold the outfit, revealing that it's similar to the cool, black outfit I've seen Rimuru wear a few times.
Rimuru nods, smiling.
"You're supposed to be me, remember? Might as well dress the part!" Rimuru quips, amused.
I guess it makes sense for me to wear something like this when pretending to be a Demon Lord. I go into the bathroom and change into it, struggling a little while lacing up the boots but having no other trouble. This isn't like when I had to wear that dress for the concert where it was hard to get all the pieces in the right places.
Looking in the mirror at myself, I blush a little since I'm not used to wearing anything even close to this. This outfit is too...'cool' for me, I guess. It seems to fit me perfectly, though. I know that I'm around the same height as Rimuru, but I didn't expect the fit to be this precise to my body. Not baggy or tight in any areas, very comfortable too.
I step back outside to see what Rimuru and Shuna will think.
"That looks pretty damn good on you, Iruma!" Rimuru says, smiling brightly.
"Yes, it does suit you surprisingly well. The fit seems just right too..." Shuna adds.
"Th-thanks!" I say, feeling awkward from the compliments.
"Let me make a few adjustments."
Shuna walks up to me and begins to straighten out my outfit while I stand like a statue, not sure how to react in a situation like this.
"C'mon Shuna, Iruma looks great!"
"Let me finish."
Rimuru lets out an uncomfortable laugh and stops bugging Shuna.
She fusses over me for another few minutes while I stare at Rimuru uncomfortably. Rimuru just shrugs, not intervening at all.
"Are you sure Iruma should come with you?" Shuna asks solemnly.
Rimuru looks confused for a moment.
"Huh? Oh...it'll be fine! Iruma knows how to behave himself." Rimuru smiles.
"That's not what I'm worried about. What will the other Demon Lords think about a human coming to Walpurgis?" Shuna continues.
"I've already talked with Guy and the others so they won't care," Rimuru replies, waving off Shuna's concerns.
Shuna lets out a small sigh, accepting Rimuru's plan despite seeming to have some problems with it.
Shuna then walks up to me, getting a little too close for comfort before reaching out and grabbing the sides of my face.
"You be careful. I'm sure Lord Rimuru will keep you safe, but still...be careful..." Shuna says seriously, staring me straight in the eyes while squishing my cheeks.
I try my best to nod with my head being held tight by Shuna's hands.
Shuna sighs and she lets go after a few seconds.
"You be careful as well, Lord Rimuru. I am sure you already know this, but when meeting with someone new, caution is important." Shuna says seriously, staring at Rimuru intensely.
"Thanks again Shuna. I'll be careful, just like usual." Rimuru replies.
Shuna gives Rimuru a small smile, the seriousness in her eyes fading.
Rimuru waves goodbye to Shuna before teleporting both of us to her office.
"What should I expect during the meeting?" I ask.
"There's not much to explain. The other Demon Lords are pretty chill most of the time, although they can be a little odd at times. You've met me already...oh, did you run into Ramiris while in Tempest?"
"Yeah, she was with Veldora in an ice cream shop that Gobta took me to."
"Okay, good. She's nothing to worry about, but that doesn't mean you can be rude to her, not that I think you would do that. Guy is a little protective of her, and he's not someone to mess with."
"Guy?"
Isn't that the person Rimuru was talking with the other night?
"Guy Crimson, the de facto leader of the Demon Lords; although he likes to dump his responsibilities on me a lot of the time. He shouldn't be a problem...well, he might be a bit troublesome, not that you have anything to worry about with me around."
"I don't get what you mean, Rimuru."
"Just...uh, he's got some 'interesting' ways of exerting his authority over people. As I said, he shouldn't try much with me there. He might not even pay you any mind since he doesn't have much interest in humans. Me on the other hand...well, I'll probably have to deal with his nonsense some while we're there. Don't get involved if he tries anything with me though, I can handle him myself."
"Don't worry Rimuru, I'll be careful. It's a bunch of Demon Lords so I know that I have to be respectful for my own safety." I assure them.
"I'm glad you understand, but don't worry too much. I've been dealing with all of them for years, so they know me well enough not to cross me in any serious way." Rimuru says casually.
"What happened to make them cautious of you?" I ask, somewhat worried about how Rimuru will answer.
"That's nothing you need to be concerned about! All you need to know is that they respect my power, that's all. That doesn't mean we don't mess with each other some, but they know that there's a line they shouldn't cross." Rimuru smiles.
I get a sinking feeling in my stomach from that last part.
Rigurd talked about when one of the Demon Lords crossed that line...
I shake my head slightly, trying to shove my worries into some dark corner I can ignore.
Rimuru looks at me with concern for a moment, but I give her a small smile and she continues.
"Then there's Milim, another that you don't have to worry too much about. We're pretty close, but don't treat her like she's the same age as you, or she might throw a tantrum." Rimuru explains.
"What?" I ask.
A tantrum?! That doesn't sound good!
"She looks like a kid, and acts like one too, but she's not. If you call her something like 'little girl' it'll set off her explosive anger." Rimuru clarifies.
"I guess that makes sense for someone called 'The Destroyer'..." I say, remembering what I learned last weekend.
"Oh, you know her title?" Rimuru asks surprisedly.
"Yeah, from Hinata's class. She said yours was 'Chaos Creator'." I add.
"She did, did she? Huh..." Rimuru says, looking a little annoyed by me knowing that about them.
"What does that mean exactly; 'Chaos Creator'?" I ask.
"Oooh...I maaaay have thrown off the balance of power in this world by accident. It's fine, though, I dealt with any issues that came from it." Rimuru says nonchalantly, smiling breezily at me.
I blink, not sure what to make of that.
"But back to the other Demon Lords, there's also Dino. You don't need to worry about him either. Don't bug him while he tries to sleep, though...hell, you probably couldn't wake him up if you tried...but he'll probably sleep through most of the meeting."
"I thought this was a serious meeting. I'm surprised someone would want to sleep during it."
"Yeah, well that's just what Dino does. Nobody minds much. Hmmm...you've already met Leon too. Don't bother him either, but he also won't do anything. He doesn't care about the other Demon Lords so he won't care about you either."
"I don't know Rimuru, he gave me a pretty mean look last time I saw him," I say, the image of Leon's glaring, icy eyes appears in my mind, making me shudder.
"That's just how his face looks most of the time, don't take it personally," Rimuru explains, chuckling a little at my nervousness about Leon.
I guess Chloe did say that he just seemed mean and is actually not as bad as he seems so I'll try not to worry too much about him.
"Oh! Lastly is Luminous Valentine; she's a vampire."
I hope she doesn't try to suck my blood...that's what vampires do to humans, right?
"She can be the plotting and scheming type, but I think I've sated her for a while." Rimuru continues.
"Wh-what does that mean?!" I sputter out.
"Nothing, nothing...oh, that reminds me, I should probably get changed too..." Rimuru says, grimacing a little at the thought of whatever she has to wear. "Just keep in mind this part wasn't my idea."
I nod my head and Rimuru swiftly melts into blue slime and reforms into her human shape.
A black and white maid dress, that's what Rimuru is wearing now. The dress isn't long, the lacy frills lining the skirt of it just falling short of Rimuru's knees. The top part has elaborate detailing, including many small ribbons and intricate patterns.
"As I said, this wasn't my idea," Rimuru says with a defeated shrug. "It's not the worst thing I've worn, but it's not what I'd choose to wear. Although the back is a little...breezy..." she grumbles, looking over her shoulder at the back of the dress, frowning.
I peek behind Rimuru to see what she's talking about...the back of the dress is almost completely open, cut in a V shape and exposing most of Rimuru's back.
It makes me grateful that when I had to wear a dress at Kuromu's concert that it fully covered me, unlike this.
"Why are you wearing this anyway? Did someone pressure you into it?" I ask, wondering about the circumstances behind her wearing a maid's dress unwillingly.
"You could say that. I like to think it was my choice in the end though; the alternative would've been worse for me." Rimuru sighs.
"What was the alternative?" I ask.
"Let's not get into that; all you need to know is that the backlash would be intense if I didn't wear this...thing...to the meeting." Rimuru gives me a non-answer and a forced smile.
"Okay..."
"The main thing you need to worry about is repeating the words I give you and doing what I say when I say it. Just like Babyls' entrance ceremony, I'll be feeding lines and instructions to you telepathically. Easy peasy."
"Sure, Rimuru, but how will I handle the pressure? I'm not very good at acting confident and I bet I would need to since I'm pretending to be a Demon Lord of all things..."
"Part of the reason I'm having you do this is so you can learn to become a little more confident. Only the new candidate doesn't know what's going on so nothing will go seriously wrong if you slip up. If things get too dicey; I'll step in and reveal myself. It won't be as much fun, but it's not a big deal either so just try your best, okay?"
Rimuru wants to use this Walpurgis to help me to become more confident?
I kind of assumed this was all for Rimuru's amusement but I guess I was wrong. I suppose she did mention that it would be a good learning experience for me, but at the time I didn't completely understand what Rimuru meant by that.
"I'll try my best..." I respond.
"Heeey! Don't look so worried! I've promised to keep you safe and I always keep my promises!" Rimuru smiles.
Just as Rimuru says this, a large, spooky-looking gate appears in front of us.
"Oh, looks like it's time," Rimuru says. "That leads to Walpurgis."