(Attendance… plz…)
….
The Next Morning:-
The morning air was crisp and cool, carrying the pleasant sound of birds singing as they flew by.
It was the next day after King Gazel and his knights, the Pegasus Knights, had departed yesterday afternoon, returning to their own country of Dwargon.
In just a few days, King Gazel would return, though this time not with an entire elite force of knights or an army of any kind, but with a formal diplomatic envoy to properly propose and form an alliance with this very village, run by monsters and led by none other than a slime… literally a slime.
If someone in the past had asked or even suggested such a thing to the Dwargon King, he would have laughed, or perhaps even felt insulted as to why he and his nation would ever consider forming an alliance with a village run by monsters, not to mention a slime.
But it was happening, and what had led to these events was no small matter. The only thing that had gone well was that King Gazel had come with somewhat of an open mind and hadn't attacked the village outright, lest they be wiped out.
While it was great news for the village, not only was it getting promoted from a village to a town soon, but it was also forming an alliance with a major nation such as Dwargon. Not to mention the many more incredible things that would follow from that alliance, such as trade and having an ally to call upon in times of need.
Today was also the day Reinhard had decided to depart, even if only for a short time.
He had been here constantly, helping out with whatever he could since that whole meeting and his sudden declaration as a forest leader, even if only temporarily in his mind, by the Dryad.
Things had settled down considerably compared to what they had been about a month ago. Reinhard stood by the window of his room in the small house he had been given in the village. It was a nice-looking, sturdy wooden house that had been built recently by the orcs, like many of the village's houses and other structures.
His house was near the center of the village. Even though he didn't mind sharing a house with others, he didn't really need all that much space by himself. Even then, he had been given his own house.
Though, even now, calling it a village was an understatement. The place was expanding day by day thanks to the High Orcs' workforce, and even other parts of the village were being developed due to the Alliance of the Forest, as it was impossible to house every orc in a single area, considering their considerable numbers.
Reinhard took a deep breath as he turned away from the window and picked up his clothes. At first, he had only had one set of clothes, and those were only his knight's uniform. But now, thanks to Shuna's skills with clothing and silk, he had gotten many sets of normal clothes to change into.
Even though Reinhard didn't actually need to change clothes, thanks one of his many Blessings, he never became dirty, and dust or dirt simply refused to cling to his clothes, he still preferred changing into something different from time to time.
There was no particular reason for him to wear his knight's uniform every single day when he had plenty of other clothes now made by Shuna. It was simply a matter of preference.
Just as he was about to turn away from the window, a knock came on his door.
"Come in."
Reinhard replied, as he already knew who was outside.
Entering his house were none other than Shion, Rimuru in his human form, Benimaru, and Shuna.
Souei was probably outside doing whatever he did, while Hakurou was probably raining hell on the goblins, especially Gobta. He really liked Gobta, or perhaps it was more like he enjoyed watching him suffer, or maybe it was more like he enjoyed watching him grow. Though Gobta probably deserved most of it.
Reinhard looked at them, somewhat surprised by their sudden appearance. While, yes, he had informed them that he was about to leave, he wasn't leaving forever. Shuna even had something in one hand that looked like a lunch box, and something else in the other.
Reinhard asked, "Is there a problem?"
Rimuru said, "Nope, nothing. Why would there suddenly be a problem?"
Reinhard shook his head as he said, "Nothing. I was just surprised to see you guys here so suddenly."
Rimuru said, "Well, I was coming alone, but then I thought, why not just go with everyone? So we all came together, knowing you're leaving today, to say goodbye. Though, can't you stay for a few more days? You know there will be people coming from Dwargon, including King Gazel."
Rimuru already knew that, in reality, the alliance had essentially already been formed between them, and the meeting a few days later was more like a formality and paperwork.
But having Reinhard on the side was much more reassuring and comforting, to say the least, lest he take all the pressure upon himself.
Reinhard chuckled a little as he said, "I think the nervous part is already done, so I don't know why you're feeling it now."
"Well, you are kinda right about that. Hahah."
Reinhard then addressed the previous question and answered, "And I suppose it is peaceful and settled now with all the problems that were there at first, thanks to you and everyone."
Then he added, "So I think it is time for me to leave. Ellen and the others also told me that the Guild Master was asking about me, so maybe I can't really avoid that forever. And it's not like I'm leaving forever. I have a couple of things I have to take care of, so maybe after that I'll come again."
Benimaru noticed Shuna's hesitation and quietly gave her a small nudge from behind.
Shuna glanced back at him, her expression briefly showing a hint of embarrassment, but she soon composed herself. Taking a small breath, she stepped forward, carrying the lunch box in one hand and a neatly folded bundle of clothes in the other.
Reinhard, who had been looking toward the others, turned his attention to her.
Shuna stopped in front of him and held out what she had brought.
She was somewhat shy and sad that Reinhard was leaving, not to mention that it was so sudden, especially after the good news of the alliance. She was a little, or maybe more than a little, sad about it.
She came forward as she tried to hand the things she had brought to Reinhard.
"I cooked some food for your travel and prepared some new clothes for you too."
She said those words straightforwardly, though somewhat timidly, to say the least.
Reinhard took them from her hand. Rejecting them, or even saying something like there was no need for them because he didn't need them, would have been terrible to begin with. So he took them gratefully and thanked her with a smile.
"Thank you, Shuna. I'll be sure to enjoy this on the way. And I'll put the clothes to good use once I return to Blumund."
Shuna also added, "I wanted to make some for Kaval, Ellen, and Gido as well, but there wasn't enough time… So I could only prepare yours."
Reinhard gave a small, reassuring smile.
"You don't have to apologize for that. I'm already grateful that you took the time to prepare these for me."
He glanced down at the neatly folded clothes in his arms before looking back at her.
"And besides, I doubt Kaval, Ellen, and Gido would want you exhausting yourself just to prepare something for them on such short notice. On the contrary, if you really want to, just do it the next time they come here and give it to them yourself. That way, they'll be happier receiving it directly from you rather than from me."
Shuna blinked for a moment before her expression softened into a small smile.
"…Yes. You're right."
Reinhard nodded.
"Then there's nothing to worry about. I'm sure they'll be happy at that time."
Shion, who had been left out of the conversation, suddenly raised her voice.
"Hey, that's cheating! Why didn't you tell me you were making food? I could have made something too! We could have prepared it together for Reinhard's journey!"
At the mention of Shion's cooking, Rimuru, Benimaru, and even Shuna's expressions changed.
For a brief moment, all three of them went strangely pale. Rimuru gave an awkward, dry laugh.
"Ah… yeah. About that…"
Benimaru quickly followed.
"I think it was better this way."
Shion immediately turned toward him.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Benimaru just added as he pushed himself slightly back, "Nothing."
Shion, not letting that remark go, said, "You definitely meant something."
Benimaru looked away.
"I simply meant that Shuna had already prepared everything… so…"
"That doesn't answer my question!"
Shion narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
Rimuru quickly stepped in to save both Reinhard and Benimaru, living up to his bro code even if they didn't understand it now.
"Anyway, the food is already finished, so there's no need to make anything else."
Shion then suddenly said, "Wait, there is still time! If I hurry, I could still make something!"
Rimuru, trying to salvage the problem, suggested, "No, no, that's really not necessary."
"Why not?"
"Because Reinhard has a long journey ahead of him, and… and…"
He then looked at Benimaru, asking for help. After all, he was trying to help both him and Reinhard.
Benimaru, understanding that stare from Rimuru, added, "Lord Rimuru is just saying that Reinhard probably should eat your cooking hot and well-prepared, fresh when he returns. If you try to make it now, it will be rushed and without much thought, which would take away most of the flavor of your wonderful cooking, Shion."
Benimaru chose to push Reinhard's future at risk rather than the present.
Shuna, who had been quietly listening, finally spoke up.
"Shion, I'm sure Reinhard appreciates the thought. But I think the food I've already prepared should be enough for his journey."
Shion looked at the lunch box in Reinhard's hands, then back at Shuna.
Shion then said somewhat dejectedly, "Benimaru, you're right. I'm sorry, Reinhard. I didn't think of this. Otherwise, I would have prepared something… But don't worry. When you return, I'll prepare my best dish for you then."
Reinhard hadn't eaten Shion's food yet, so he didn't know what all those expressions were about. Most of the time, when Shion cooked, Reinhard had luckily either not been present or had been somewhere else helping.
Maybe it was one his divine blessing, or maybe just his incredible luck working on it.
So, the ones who had eaten her cooking were, more often than not, Rimuru and Benimaru, as Shion made new dishes every now and then and tried them on those two most of the time.
Reinhard scratched his cheek with his free hand, letting out a small laugh.
"Haha, then I'll be looking forward to it."
He paused for a moment before adding with an encouraging smile,
"In the meantime, you can keep practicing and come up with something new. By the time I return, perhaps you'll have another dish you're especially proud of."
Shion's eyes immediately lit up.
"Leave it to me! I'll make something even better next time!"
"I'm sure you will," Reinhard replied.
Those words, however, made Shion extremely happy, while Benimaru and Rimuru's faces looked as though their vitality had been sucked out of them in an instant.
Shion would be trying more new dishes and experimenting with food using new methods.
And who would be the ones to taste them?
Bro… bro, you broke the bro code. I covered for you! Rimuru thought as he began to imagine the new taste of horrors he will be experiencing in the future.
….
A/N: Noooooooooooo…
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