Shion's terrifying arm strength turned what had been a casual hug into a catastrophe.
Rimuru—who had been comfortably nestled against her chest a moment ago—was instantly crushed like a watermelon.
So much for the saying that "you can't kill someone with your chest."This was the true meaning of a deadly embrace.
If Rimuru hadn't been a slime, that explosive surge of strength would have snapped a flying dragon's neck like a twig.
"…Lady Shion," Rimuru's fragmented body reformed shakily as his voice echoed with lingering trauma, "did I… do something to offend you?"
Normally, Rimuru called Shion by name without a second thought. But after that sudden, murderous squeeze, he found himself instinctively adding an honorific.
Had she somehow discovered that he'd recently snuck off with Gobta and the others to visit the succubus establishment in Dwargon?
"I-it's Lord Ren…"
Shion barely managed to utter those words in response to Rimuru's guilty stammer.
And then—
She collapsed.
Completely unconscious.
Elsewhere, within the Jura Great Forest—
Shuna, who had been preparing lunch for everyone, suddenly staggered.
A female goblin who had been assisting her froze in alarm as Shuna's body began radiating an overwhelming surge of magicules. Panicked, she sprinted to fetch Benimaru and Hakurō, who were waiting in the adjacent room.
By the time they rushed into the kitchen, the situation had already escalated beyond reason.
The magicule density around Shuna was skyrocketing at an absurd rate.
Among the kijin, Shuna's magicule reserves had always been considered average—solid, but not exceptional compared to Benimaru or Hakurō.
But now?
The rate of increase was staggering.
In mere moments, her magicule levels had surpassed both Benimaru and Hakurō.
Worse still—
They could clearly sense that her current output had already exceeded that of the former Orc Lord.
It was only slightly inferior to Lord Rimuru after he had devoured the Orc Lord.
As her magicules spiraled upward uncontrollably, Shuna—unlike Rimuru—lacked the ability to perfectly regulate such explosive growth.
The kitchen floor cracked.
The ceiling began to collapse.
The very air trembled.
Outside, nearby monsters either fainted outright or fell to their knees, legs trembling uncontrollably.
This was the natural suppression of superior lifeforms over inferior ones.
The direwolves and goblins outside were powerless before it.
Even Benimaru and Hakurō—both high-ranking kijin—felt their hearts seize under the pressure radiating from Shuna.
Rimuru's magicule levels were terrifying as well, but he had mastered the art of hiding in plain sight. To most observers, he appeared to be nothing more than a harmless little slime.
Shion and Shuna could also suppress their auras under normal circumstances.
But the blessing of the Voice of the World had come too suddenly.
They were completely unprepared.
Shion's situation had been manageable. With Rimuru's strength, suppressing her runaway magicules wasn't too difficult.
But Shuna—
Benimaru and Hakurō desperately tried to approach her, intending to help stabilize her condition.
They couldn't even get close.
The raging storm of magicules surrounding her made it nearly impossible to advance.
Thankfully, after the kitchen collapsed—and even part of the street outside was reduced to rubble—
Shuna's magicule surge gradually stabilized.
She fell into a deep sleep.
Without hesitation, Benimaru scooped up his younger sister and sprinted toward Rimuru's location at full speed.
Along the way, he encountered Rimuru riding atop Ranga, who was currently carrying the unconscious Shion.
When Benimaru saw that Shion had also fallen unconscious, countless questions rushed to his lips—
But Rimuru raised a hand.
"Let's get them inside first."
Once both Shion and Shuna were laid on beds within a secure room, Benimaru could no longer contain himself.
"Lord Rimuru, what is going on?" he demanded, his voice tight with worry. "Why would my sister and Shion suddenly experience something like this? Could it be Demon Lord Clayman…?"
The Orc Lord incident had revealed that one of the Ten Great Demon Lords—Clayman—had been manipulating events behind the scenes.
By defeating the Orc Lord, they had undoubtedly incurred Clayman's hostility.
Benimaru had never considered Clayman as terrifying as the Dragon Princess Milim.
After all, Demon Lords fell into three categories.
The first were self-proclaimed Demon Lords—beings who possessed a Demon Lord Seed but had not truly awakened. The Orc Lord had been one such example.
The second were titled Demon Lords—those who possessed a Demon Lord Seed but had not awakened it, yet were acknowledged by other Demon Lords.
The third were the true awakened Demon Lords—those whose Demon Lord Seed had fully awakened. Recognition from others was irrelevant. They were simply powerful.
Clayman fell into the second category—a titled Demon Lord.
Given Rimuru's possession of a Demon Lord Seed and his power after devouring the Orc Lord, Benimaru had believed Rimuru could match Clayman without issue.
So he had not viewed Clayman as an immediate threat.
But today's sudden abnormalities shook that confidence.
Clayman was known as the "Marionette Master."
His specialty was remote manipulation—turning others into puppets on invisible strings.
When Benimaru saw Shuna's strange behavior, that possibility had been the first thing to cross his mind.
Rimuru shook his head.
"I don't think this is Clayman."
"Before Shion passed out, she said Ren's name."
"I suspect this has something to do with him."
After answering Benimaru, Rimuru turned his attention back to the unconscious pair and called upon the Great Sage within him.
He knew Ren was involved.
But he had no idea what exactly was happening.
『Analysis complete.』
The Great Sage's emotionless voice echoed in his mind.
『Individuals Shion and Shuna are experiencing steady increases in magicule capacity. Based on observed parameters, they are receiving a Demon Lord–class blessing as direct subordinates of another entity.』
『Cross-referencing naming records. The naming origin for both individuals is Teno-in Yuto. Conclusion: Magicule source is Teno-in Yuto.』
『Further analysis: Individuals Shion and Shuna are undergoing racial evolution. Kijin → Oni Deity. The surge in magicules and temporary unconsciousness are normal side effects of evolutionary advancement.』
Rimuru let out a long breath.
Relief flooded him.
He quickly relayed the explanation to the anxiously waiting Benimaru and the others.
Upon learning that this phenomenon was not a curse or attack—but rather a blessing—
Benimaru and the others visibly relaxed.
At the same time—
They couldn't help casting complicated, slightly envious looks toward the sleeping Shion and Shuna.
When Ren had first named them, his strength had been roughly comparable to Rimuru's.
Back then, the gap between them had not been overwhelming.
But as Ren traveled across worlds and grew stronger, Shion and Shuna—being his directly named subordinates—had steadily grown alongside him.
Benimaru, Ranga, and the others had already been forced to double their training efforts just to keep up.
And now—
Lord Ren had apparently awakened as a Demon Lord.
Even if they trained ten times harder every single day—
They probably wouldn't be able to catch up to Shion and Shuna anymore.