The Day Of Revival 3
As they approached the cave entrance, they could hear a lot of frenzy chatter. A mob had gathered around the cave, trying, by the looks of it, to get past Diablo who, obviously, was not having it. They sounded very worried, something about him being gone for thee days and the revival of Veldora.
'Wait a minute...' Rimuru stopped, looking at Veldora who seemed just as clueless 'THREE DAYS?!' he didn't realized how long he was actually down there. It felt like the first time he reincarnated, when he completely lost track of time. He quickly hurried to the mob...
-'Ah, I'm sorry everyone...' he said, drawing their attention 'seems I worried you.' immediately, his subordinates rushed him to see if he was okay. Seeing Veldora come up next to him, they were understandably confused, so Rimuru decided some introductions were in order
-'Everyone, I'd like you to meet someone: this here is Veldora! He's a bit shy so treat him well, okay?' he told them. He had to suppress a laugh at their flabbergasted expression. Everyone began shouting and pointing, and Veldora...looked away in embarrassment, then shouted at Rimuru
-'Since when am I shy, Rimuru?!'
-'Introduce yourself, dunce!' he whispered back. Veldora looked over at the crowd and slowly got up his courage (he really was shy; three centuries of isolation may or may not have anything to do with that.)
-'Ahem...Yes, I am the Great Veldora, the Storm Dragon!' he bombastically declared 'You must be curious what my relation with Rimuru here is, aren't you? Aren't you?' several people nodded 'Well...were are Best Friends!' he declared. There was a deafening silence; Rimuru once again felt like dying of embarrassment. Then the crowd went wild again in shock and admiration. It seemed that Veldora was well liked and respected by the monsters of the Forests; in that regard too, he reminded Rimuru of Milim.
While the crowd was fawning over Veldora, Rimuru sense Soei appear nearby.
-'Master...' the ogre said 'I have information you must hear.' he told Rimuru, who nodded and decided the Veldora Fawning Festival could wait.
A bit later, Veldora and everyone else was gathered in his office. Once everyone seemed to settle down, he began his announcement.
-'Everyone, I have decided on my next course of action: I shall become a Demon Lord!' he said; everyone looked at him confused
-'But...aren't you already one?' Shion asked
-'I ascended as a True Demon Lord, yes; but that is in terms of power. No, I mean something else...' he declared. The people assembled look to contemplate his words. 'What I intent is to declare myself a Demon Lord and become one in title as well.'
-'I see.' Shuna said 'You want the other Demon Lords to acknowledge you as their equal.' her words make everyone realize his intention, and they all nodded in agreement.
-'So do you intent to pick a fight with them?' Kaijin asked 'Because that's what usually happens when someone declares themselves a Demon Lord...'
-'Yes, I do.' he confirmed with determination 'More specifically, one of them; Clayman!' he said the name with venom. 'He is the one behind this entire thing, I know it. The Orc Lord, Falmuth...I suspect even Milim was made to do what she did by that bastard.' he said the last one through gritted teeth. Everyone in the room but the beastmen, Mjulan and the humans understood his apparent anger when he mentioned Milim; they too had grown very fond of the Demon Lord and hearing she may be manipulated by Clayman struck a cord. Not to mention she was their Master's girlfriend, which meant they respected her immensely (even if some may not admit it). 'No offense...' he said, looking at Albis and the other beastmen
-'None taken, sir.' Albis said with a small smile 'We do not hold a grudge against Lady Milim...'
-'Especially since you are probably right and Clayman made her do it.' Phobio interjected 'I'm sure of it too; I didn't make out the whole thing, but I heard Master Carrior say that she was acting weird...'
-'And that's not all...' Suphia said 'The fact that Phobio got away when Demon Lord Frey was there just doesn't feel right. Harpies have some of the best eyesight in world; no way she didn't saw him. Why let him get away?' she asked
-'Indeed' Albis said 'Right now, I think we are all in agreement that the true enemy is Demon Lord Clayman. So, if you do intend to fight him, we have a request of you, Sir Rimuru...' as she said that, the three approached him bowed 'Allow us to join! We are at your service!' they said in unison . Rimuru took a few seconds to consider.
-'Alright, I accept.' he told them 'And I promise that, until I can return you to Carrion, I will take care of you.' the three raised their heads and offered a thankful smile 'Now then, we have a lot to plan...Soei?'
Hearing his name, the ogre took a step forward 'Yes, Sir.' he said with a small bow 'As ordered, I have been keeping taps on Demon Lord Clayman. Though I haven't been able to infiltrate his castle, I have information on the movement of his armies.'
-'Clayman's army?' Rimuru asked
-'Yes. They number about 30,000 and have begun marching about a day ago.' Soei reported 'Based on their marching route, they are headed for the City of the Forgotten Dragon.'
-'Milim's territory...' Rimuru recalled that the City was the only major settlement in her lands. Thinking carefully, it didn't make much sense 'What's he planing?' he wondered aloud 'Wasn't his plan to attack Tempest? Would it not be quicker to march west straight to us instead of taking a roundabout route?'
-'It should...' Albis interjected 'so why then...'
Suddenly, however, Rimuru sense something 'Wait.' he said 'Someone's approaching...' and rushed outside. The others followed suit
Coming down the main road were a large group of horseback humans; at their front was...Fuze, the guildmaster of Blumund's Free Guild. As the horses slowed down, Fuze saw Rimuru waiting for him and quickly dismantled
-'Long time, Sir Rimuru!' he said in an urgent voice 'I'm glad we made it here in time!'
'Huh? Made it time for what?' Rimuru though to himself
-'It seems the enemy still has some time before they arrive.' Fuze said, ignorant of Riumru's confused stare 'Sadly I could only bring a small number of troops and volunteered adventurers...' hearing that, Rimuru took a good look at the other humans; some of them he recognize as adventurers who had volunteered to help him when Falmuth attacked. The same who he sent away... which is when a realization hit him
-'Ah, Fuze...' he tried saying, but the guildmaster just kept going
-'No worries! We are here in accordance with your treaty with Blumund! Things may look dire, but we have some experience in fighting forces larger than ourselves!' he boasted 'If we play our cards right, we could...' he stopped to look around a bit, confused 'hey, why aren't you guys more concerned about this? There's an army marching on you guys, you know?' he asked. Rimuru had to struggle to offer his most sincere smile instead of laughing at Fuze's confused look.
-'Ah, about that...they're gone.' seeing Fuze was no less confused, he continued 'The army from Falmuth, I mean. It's gone.' he tried to say it as casually as he could. After a few seconds, Fuze finally processed his words
-'What do you mean 'they're gone'?!' he shouted 'According to Mjollmille, it's been less than two weeks since Falmuth declared war! How could...what do...' Rimuru struggled to maintain the smile
-'Ah, listen, Fuzey...' however, his attempt to explain himself was interrupted
Notice: thirty mounted pegasus knights led by King Gazel Dwargo approaching. Raphael suddenly said. Rimuru turned to look north, temporary ignoring Fuze, and saw the distant figures of the flying horses
'One after the other' he though to himself 'hey, Raphael, how about you only inform me of dangerous entities?'
Understood Raphael said
A few seconds later, Gazel landed ahead of his troops and approached Rimuru 'Been a while, Rimuru' he said 'So I heard you became a Demon Lord.' he said casually
-'Ah, yeah...a lot of things happened...' Rimuru said with yet another forced smile; he didn't even try to act surprise that Gazel found out. However...
-'Huh?' he heard Fuze say 'Demon...Lord? What Demon Lord?' he looked like his brain had a hard time trying to comprehend. He began to tremble. Seeing him tremble, Rimuru said
-'Ah, it's a lot to explain...' he said rubbing his head
-'Sir Rimuru...' Fuze said as he calmed down a bit 'Please, do explain. Dose the war against Falmuth already being over and you becoming a Demon Lord have anything to do with each other?' seeing his serious expression, Rimuru decided not to beat around the bush
-'Yes.' he said 'In order to save my country, it was necessary for me to become a Demon Lord; killing the Falmuth army myself was a necessary sacrifice...' he told them plainly. 'I had to kill them...' he tried saying, but Gazel suddenly interjected
-'Wait, Rimuru...do you know the reason why the Falmuth army suddenly vanished?During their march, they suddenly went missing in action...' he asked. Rimuru looked at hims confused 'What is he saying?' he though to himself
-'Yes, I heard that too from Vesta's report.' one of Gazel's people said as he stepped off his horse. 'He said that the forces of Falmuth vanished abruptly without a trace...' he said as he locked eyes with the king. Looking between the two dwarves, Rimuru suddenly had a realization
'Ah, I see...they're trying to conceal the fact that I massacred an army of 20,000. Someone who is capable of such destruction, comparable to nuclear weapons...' he though to himself. Having someone like that as the leader of a nation of monsters, who were already feared, might make things even worse for Tempest. Realizing that, Rimuru decided that it would be best to play along. He turned to Fuze and faked the biggest smile he could
-'Ah, Fuzey...It seems that Falmuth's army went missing...' and lied shamelessly. Fuze did not look impressed; in fact, he looked downright angry, but after taking a second to breath he said
-'I see..I must be exhausted after the march here...so the enemy has gone...missing...' he said the words through gritted teeth. 'Okay, that's the story. But...I want to be allowed to join your meeting.'
-'Of course...but, erm...' he wanted to say that he would like to...alter...some of the memories of Fuze's men; it wouldn't do to have them accidentally spread the truth...however, once again, he was interrupted.
-'Well, well, well...' a new voice he didn't recognize said. He turned around and saw a group of strangers approaching. Leading them was the man who spoke, a blond haired man with expensive looking robes and an air or nobility. However, he wasn't talking to Rimuru 'if it isn't the monarch who enjoys hiding away in his cave...' he said as he looked at Gazel with an amused expression 'To think a coward like you would side with a Demon Lord...'
'What the hell.' Rimuru though looking at the man 'Raphael...'
Report: No hostilities was detected, therefore no report was issued... Raphael said.
'Ah...right. My bad.' Rimuru's thoughts were then interrupted by Gazel
-'Well, if it isn't the high and might elves who like to live with their heads in the clouds.' The dwarf king shot back 'Why are you even here?' he asked with some disdain
Trying to make sense of the situation, he saw Soka approaching from behind the new group. She hurried to his side 'Sir Rimuru, these people are envoys from the Sorcerer Dynasty of Thalion.' she told him, just loud enough for him. That's when
-'Rimuru?!' the man screamed 'So you're the Demon Lord who bewitched my daughter!' he said as a large amount of magicules were gathered around him. A magical array formed in front of him, preparing for an attack...
-'Whaaaat?!' Rimuru screamed in panic, wondering what the man was on about and what to do with the attack. However...someone came from behind the man and smacked him over the head. As he fell to the ground clutching his head, the array vanished.
-'Papa, what are you doing?! Why did you come here?!' Elen screamed at the man, who suddenly perked up and stood straight.
-'Ah, ha ha...I came to save you, of course, my beloved daughter!' he told her with a smile; she didn't seem to buy it, looking at him disappointingly. Rimuru watched the scene, hellbent to not get dragged into whatever was going on.
-'As always, way to overprotective...' he could hear Gazel mutter from the side.
-'Sorry about that. It's just, I heard my daughter was kidnapped by a Demon Lord, but it seems it isn't the case. I am Elalude Grimwald, Archduke of Thalion.' he said in a much more polite tone and with a slight bow 'It's a pleasure, Chancellor of the Great Forest of Jura.'
-'It's a pleasure too.' Rimuru said politely 'I don't suppose you came here just for Eren, though?'
-'Of course not.' he said plainly 'I came here to ascertain you, your nation and your worth...to see for myself just what kind of person you are...' he told him 'I have yet to make up my mind. Perhaps, I could join your meeting, Sir Rimuru?'
Rimuru stopped to think for a few moments, then said 'Of course. I will have an appropriate place prepared.' And with that, he ordered his people to start preparing a place for their ad hoc meeting. While seeing them off, he prayed nothing worse would come up to make his life even more difficult...
-'Hey, Rimuru!' Veldora suddenly appeared 'I finished this already!' he said holding a book- a manga he had made for the dragon to keep him occupied 'Could you make the next volume?'
-'Ah, maybe later, Veldora. I have important...' his words were suddenly cut short when he felt a shiver run down his body; he turned around and saw Gazel, Fuse and Elalude staring at Veldora, then mechanically turned their heads towards him. Rimuru could suddenly feel a cold sweat run down his whole body. It seemed his prayers would be unanswered.