"Luminous damn it! They were supposed to report to us yesterday! Where the hell is Razen?" One of Falmuth's nobles shouted, his voice rising with anxiety. The tension in the room was increasing with every passing second.
What had begun as a routine meeting had devolved into chaos. The night before, the nobles had received letters detailing their crimes, each signed with a chilling threat. Now, paranoia ran rampant, igniting frantic arguments and desperate denials.
In a shadowy corner, away from the frantic nobles, sat Blanc and Noir. Blanc sipped wine leisurely while Noir stood with a serene smile.
"It's almost too easy… I wonder if we'll impress our Lord with just this…" Noir mused, his eyes gleaming with fanatic devotion. "Truly, never in my life have I ever committed such a mistake as the day when he summoned me. I should have thrown myself at him and offered him my very existence then."
Blanc's eyes glowed a bright crimson as she heard him, a vicious smile appearing on her lips.
"Indeed, we were fools. I prided myself on my judgment, but the look he gave us after his Awakening…" Blanc shivered, recalling the intensity of Rimuru's gaze. "It felt as though my existence was insignificant to him."
Noir began to laugh, looking at some of the spies hiding in the shadows of some nobles, his eyes sparkling as he looked at the masks they wore on their faces, completely eliminating all traces of their magicules.
As he reached to touch his face, he couldn't help but smile.
"To think our bodies are made of his own flesh… we are one with Lord Rimuru…" He smiled, and then a feeling of terror crept up his spine. "You don't think he will be angry at us for offering to serve him for such a short time?"
At this, Blanc's eyes opened wide.
"I… I only offered him a year…" Her face twisted slightly as she thought back, but she shook her head and stood up. "Enough of this. We need to finish this as fast as we can."
When Blanc thought back to Rimuru's Awakening, she couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement. She wasn't one to follow other people so easily, but she had seen something that should have been impossible. Through her countless years of existence, she had seen a lot of things, but now she had seen someone become a Paradox. Something that shouldn't exist.
It was hard to explain, but deep inside her, she knew that she had to follow Rimuru. She felt she would regret it if she lost her chance now.
Noir, for his part, was almost obsessive. He was ready to offer his entire life to Rimuru. He was everything he had been searching for. If Rimuru commanded him to die, he would do so in a heartbeat, only to continue killing himself until Rimuru told him to stop.
After a few moments, Blanc and Noir stepped outside the room, then burst back in with a dramatic flair. The nobles fell silent, their eyes widening in recognition and fear.
"Ah! It's you! You left with our king for the war, didn't you? Are you here to give us a report? Why was there such a long delay?" One of the nobles shouted, directing his paranoia and anxiety to Noir.
Noir, for his part, simply smiled.
"Kufufufufu. You are right; I am here to provide a report. Falmuth's army of 20,000 has been annihilated by Lord Rimuru. The only survivor was Razen, the Archmage, who is currently a war prisoner." Noir announced, drawing the room into an absolute silence.
In the silence, Blanc was the next to step up, giving a beautiful smile that only made the people who saw her feel fear.
"Lord Rimuru has also decided to take upon himself the title of Demon Lord, and due to your attack on his country, he has set his eyes on Falmuth. He wishes to use your kingdom as an example of why you should never mess with a Demon Lord. If you surrender now, there will be no need to shed more blood."
The meeting room remained silent until Duke Ravengard stood up, his voice trembling with barely concealed fear.
"What is the meaning of this? A Demon Lord? We sent Razen and some holy knights provided by the church. Do you think our army is so weak it can be annihilated so easily?" He paused, his eyes narrowing. "And, wait a second, Lord Rimuru? Are you calling the King of the Monsters your Lord?"
Seeing him stand against them, the other nobles found a spark of courage and began shouting.
"You are traitors! I knew you were suspicious when you offered us weapons…"
"I will have both of you captured and—"
"I will call the church. The Paladins will never—"
Seeing the chaos erupt once again, Noir's smile disappeared.
"Silence." Noir commanded, and the next moment, countless of the Shadows emerged and covered the entire meeting room in Steel Thread. Any movement would mean losing their lives.
Seeing the fear grow again in the nobles, Noir's smile returned, even brighter than before.
"Good. Now, how about we sit and listen now? Killing all of you would make things too messy right now…. Although…." Noir mused, causing all of the nobles to begin sweating. "Blanc, what are your thoughts?"
Blanc, who decided to play along, smiled beautifully again, tapping her chin thoughtfully.
"Well, Noir, Lord Rimuru thinks war is messy. We should act in a way that discourages other nations from challenging us. As much as I'd love to turn this room red, it might make other nations a bit tense. But... mercy has a price... Do you think they can pay?" She approached one of the nobles, playfully tugging a string and drawing blood.
Duke Ravengard, who appeared to be the noble with the most influence, suddenly felt the strings around him loosen, giving him a chance to speak, and he felt the sudden pressure as all eyes turned to him.
"We… we can offer you as much money as you want… we have a stockpiles of stell- urgh." Duke Ravengard's voice choked off as the string tightened around him.
"Money?" Blanc's laughter rang out, a beautiful yet chilling sound. "Noir, they think they can buy their way out of this. What were they planning on doing with our people again, Noir?"
Noir shook his head slowly, a mockery of disappointment in his eyes.
"I seem to recall something about killing us, enslaving us. Ah, the cruelty only Humans can conjure. It makes you wonder who the real Monsters are."
The nobles felt cold sweat trickling down their faces, their fear tangible. Yet, one noble managed to muster some defiance, speaking up shakily.
"Our God Luminous won't allow a Demon Lord to live after he-"
His words ended abruptly as his head hit the floor with a sickening thud.
"God Luminous… That's where you're all mistaken," Noir said, his voice cold and final. "There are no kings, no gods, there is only Lord Rimuru. The sooner you accept that the smoother this will go."
Blanc stepped forward, her eyes glinting with malice.
"We aren't here for your money. We're here to ensure your complete submission to Lord Rimuru. Fail to comply, and your kingdom will be reduced to ashes."
The room was deathly silent, and the nobles were too terrified to move. Blanc's gaze swept over them, her smile as terrifying and beautiful as ever.
"Now, shall we discuss the terms of your surrender?"
— — —
Frey's eyes fluttered open, standing up, her wings instinctively stretched out. Her thoughts were slightly hazy, but she could still remember the words of the Voice of the World.
She had successfully Awakened as a True Demon Lord and felt stronger than ever; even her Unique skill had evolved into something she didn't believe was possible, an Ultimate Skill. The Ultimate Skill: Tezcatlipoca, Lord of Reflection.
From what she could feel instinctively, she knew it came with a few subskills.
Obsidian Mirror: She could conjure a mirror from her magicules, a dark, gleaming surface capable of reflecting anything. She sensed that the strength of what she reflected would influence how many magicules it would cost her to reflect the attack.
Reflection: Her original ability, she would be able to reflect any attacks she took. But she would have to physically take the attack and damage before returning it. Just like before, she could use it if for some reason someone broke through her mirror.
Absorption: She could feel that through the Obsidian Mirror, she could capture an attack. Her Mirror would then consume the magicules of the attack to fuel the next reflection instead of draining her own. But if she absorbed the attack, she wouldn't be able to reflect on it.
Replication: She would be able to use her own magicules, or magicules captured inside of the mirror, to recreate any attacks she had absorbed into her mirror.
Spatial Mirror: Using her newly found connection to space, she felt like she could connect two different points through a mirror. She could probably use it not only to teleport but as a weapon. Creating mirrors on the battlefield that could reflect or replicate attacks even far away from her.
Mirror Domain: The most confusing of all of her skills. She felt like she could capture an area inside of her mirror. She would need to experiment with it to be able to understand what it could truly do. However, she could assume that she would be able to redirect and reflect attacks with it.
Just by feeling what the sub-skills were, she could feel the best course of action would be to bait magic attacks or skills to fuel her mirror before using it to return every attack that came her way. The main weakness is the time before the mirror was fully powered up or pure physical strikes that can't fuel the mirror.
Activating her skill for the first time, Frey summoned a full-length mirror, taking a moment to admire her new form. Her now brown feathers, which were intertwined with Rimuru's own feathers, shimmered softly. She reached out, touching one with a slight smile.
Exiting the bedroom, she navigated the familiar halls of Rimuru's Chancellor's building, her mind already on the task at hand. Passing a window, she noticed the Beastketeers being escorted by one of Rimuru's maids, their expressions tinged with anxiety.
"Ah, shit." Frey cursed, suddenly remembering her promise to Rimuru. She wanted to show him just how useful she could be, and if she had accidentally overslept, she would not be able to look him in the eyes. Especially after making such a big deal about leaving it all to her.
While she had set some things before the attack on Falmuth, she doubted that would be enough to get Carrion to submit.
Summoning her Spatial Mirror, she glimpsed into Rimuru's office and stepped through with a graceful leap. She found Shuna there, organizing some documents with the help of a few maids. Shuna's face lit up upon seeing her.
"Ah, Frey, I've been waiting for you. Please, have a seat." Shuna said, nodding to the maids to give them privacy. "The Beastketeers arrived just this morning..."
As Frey listened, she felt a wave of relief. There was still time to push Carrion towards submission.
"How does Rimuru plan on rescuing all of the refugees?" Frey asked, her mind racing with strategies. The pieces on the chessboard were in motion, but she needed to ensure victory. Perhaps she could even use her Spatial Mirror to help.
"I'm not sure." Shuna replied, a hint of amusement in her voice. "He said he wanted to surprise us, but I trust he'll come up with something brilliant."
Frey thought for a moment before rising from her seat.
"Thanks, Shuna. I know what I need to do. I'm going to confront that stubborn Lion before Milim attacks… Actually, I have a new plan. Tell Rimuru to leave it to me."
Shuna nodded, then gently placed a hand on Frey's arm.
"Are you sure you don't want to stay? We're about to have a small dinner to welcome Veldora back."
"No, I need to get started now before it's too late." Frey said firmly. "I'll trust Rimuru to handle the refugees, but tell him to contact me if he needs any help. I can travel quickly now, thanks to my new Skill."
Just as Frey was about to summon a Mirror to teleport away, she heard Shuna laugh.
"You know, when we first met, I thought you would be a lot more difficult to deal with."
Stopping in her tracks, Frey couldn't help but smile, thinking back to their first interaction.
"Oh, I have no idea what you are talking about. I was nothing but pleasant." Frey joked, chuckling slightly. "If anything, you were the one who was being difficult. I would have been more than happy if you had known your place."
Shuna matched her smile.
"That was the issue, wasn't it? I knew exactly what my place was, by Rimuru's side as his Queen."
The two of them stared at each other, the tension growing before they suddenly burst out laughing.
Frey shook her head, her eyes softening.
"I can only assume that the Skill you Awakened through the Harvest Festival has something to do with being a Queen. Right? I can feel the aura you give off now, which is entirely different than before."
Shuna nodded, her gaze steady as she activated her Royal Haki, the powerful aura radiating from her.
"From a Queen to another Queen. I'm impressed, Shuna." Frey mused with a smile. "I've been watching you since we first met, and you haven't disappointed me once. If anything, I feel like I am the one falling behind."
Shuna's expression softened, her aura fading as she spoke.
"Thank you, Frey. That means a lot coming from you. But now I am the one who is behind. You are a True Demon Lord, which means you are the strongest, so I can only ask that you look after Rimuru. Since I am too weak to do so right now."
"Right now?" Frey asked, a smile appearing on her face. "I guess I will have to watch my back then." After laughing one more time, she added. "If you ever want to come to Fulbrosia to drink tea, don't hesitate to ask."
After Shuna nodded her head, Frey made a full-sized Obsidian Mirror appear in front of her.
With a final nod, Frey stepped through the Obsidian Mirror. This left Shuna laughing slightly as she saw the mirror vanish.
"Shuna 2, Frey 0… Or should I call that one a tie?" Musing to herself, she left the office and continued preparing for the dinner.
— — —
In the Sorcerer's Dynasty Sarion, Empress Elmisia sat in her garden casually enjoying her day. She had been lazing around for some time, carefully eating and savoring every bite of one of the treats that Elyun, who used the name Ellen as a disguise, had sent her.
Elmisia had a couple of Rimuru pillows around her, made of the finest silk in existence. They were one of Tempest's best-selling products, and they were starting to gain some popularity worldwide. However, Elmisia's was special since it was part of a set made by Shuna in her free time.
Thanks to Universal Thread, the silk was imbued with Invigorate and Provider. Though it couldn't actually strengthen the one who bought the pillow, if you passed your magicules through them, you would be able to feel the same warmth and comfort as if you were hugging Rimuru himself, though to a lesser extent.
One of Shuna's passions was sewing, so she had actually made around 50 pillows that had become treasured items. She had gifted them to a few high-ranking people across Tempest who had asked her for one. And somehow, Elmisia had managed to gather five
of them
Picking up the orb, she saw Elyuns face, which instantly brought a smile to her face.
"Ah, Elyun. You have to tell me where you got this cake. I am honestly not sure which one tastes better, this one or Yoshida's cake. We'll have to set up a tea party to taste-test both of them." Elmisia said casually, lifting her fork and placing another piece into her mouth.
"Uh… yeah… so um… about that…" Elyun began, sounding slightly nervous. "So remember Tempest? The awesome place I was telling you about, with all the pillows and snacks and stuff…"
Hearing how nervous Elyun sounded, Elmisia placed the cake she was eating down and focused.
"What is it? Are you in trouble?"
Elyun looked around, slightly nervous, before speaking.
"Yeah, so Rimuru just Awakened as True Demon Lord… So I was going to give you a call before, but I didn't have time, and Falmuth was invading, and they were gonna kill the people here, so Rimuru went out and, you know… Oh, yeah, and Frey was there too. She also Awakened."
Elmisia looked surprised when she heard the first part, but her eyebrow twitched slightly as she heard the second.
"So the Pigeon finally Awakened… what a pain." Elmisia sighed, thinking back to the constant attacks Frey had launched on Sarion in the past, trying to take over their Divine Tree.
Her mind wandered for a few seconds, and she tried to think of the best course of action before asking.
If Frey had acquired an Ultimate Skill and still harbored the same intentions, then things may get troublesome. If Rimuru decided to join Frey in her attack on Sarion she may even need to call her mother back.
"Alright, tell me everything…"
"Alright, well, first of all, before you get angry. Know that Rimuru will probably stop Frey from annoying us again if we ask him. He's actually pretty nice…."
— — —
Special Thanks to my Beta Readers/Editors: The one, the only, the amazing @Basilisk, the Aussie @LuluViBritania (FF.N, SB, WN and QQ)/-LuluViB|99th Britannian Emperor(Discord) and @Kiyan Tribe (FF.net/AO3/QQ/WN) | kiyan_tribe( Discord)
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