Hearing Rimuru happily assigning opponents like he was handing out roles in a game Ren Kuroda—who was sitting nearby, immediately darkened.
"Rimuru… why am I the one fighting Milim instead of you? If anything, why not let Veldora handle it?" Ren protested, glaring at the cheerful slime in front of him. "That girl doesn't know how to hold back when she fights! If things go wrong, I could actually get killed!"
Staring at the adorable blob that looked harmless enough to melt hearts, Ren was once again reminded of a certain saying.
The cuter the exterior, the darker the heart inside.
Among all the enemies they were facing, Demon Lord Milim was undoubtedly the most troublesome one. Yet somehow the job of dealing with her had been shoved onto him, while Rimuru had quietly chosen the weakest opponent for himself.
"Getting killed? That's a bit dramatic, don't you think?" Rimuru replied cheerfully. "Didn't you fight Milim for dozens of rounds before? You even suppressed her for a while, remember?"
"As for Veldora," he continued casually, "our enemies don't even know he exists yet. If possible, I'd rather keep him as a trump card."
Then the slime puffed up proudly before suddenly transforming back into his small slime form.
"And besides," Rimuru said pitifully, wobbling slightly, "I'm just a slime. The weakest kind of monster there is. Sending me to challenge a dragon-demon like Milim would be way too cruel, don't you think?"
He even made a deliberately tragic expression, clearly hoping to win sympathy with cuteness.
Unfortunately for him, Ren wasn't buying it at all.
"Cut the crap," Ren snapped, grabbing the slime with both hands and stretching it apart like a piece of jelly. "You're a fully awakened Demon Lord now, and your magicule count is absurd. Most awakened Demon Lords wouldn't even stand a chance against you. Don't try to play the innocent in front of me with that appearance."
"Hey! Look who's talking!" Rimuru retorted while being stretched like rubber. "You always walk around in that ordinary human form while suppressing your magicules to almost nothing. You're tricking people just as much as I am!"
Watching the two of them descend into a childish tug-of-war, Benimaru rubbed his forehead with a headache.
If it were the usual day, it wouldn't matter. But right now the representatives from the Beast Kingdom were literally standing nearby.
Seeing the two supreme leaders of the Monster Federation behaving like this made Benimaru feel a deep sense of embarrassment.
"My apologies for the spectacle," Benimaru said to the Three Beastketeers with an awkward smile. "Lord Rimuru and Lord Ren simply have a very good relationship, so sometimes things… end up like this."
"But you probably heard what they said earlier. Demon Lord Clayman is also our enemy. Because of that, Lord Rimuru will most likely agree to accept the refugees from your Beast Kingdom."
Originally, the Beast Kingdom of Eurazania had been one of the countries Rimuru planned to establish trade relations with. Unfortunately, before anything could even begin, disaster had already struck.
In order to maintain some dignity in front of foreign guests, Benimaru felt obligated to salvage what he could, so he apologized sincerely.
However, the Three Beastketeers hardly seemed concerned about the awkward scene at all.
That was because the conversation between Ren and Rimuru had just revealed an astonishing amount of information.
The first thing that delighted them was the fact that these powerful monsters from the Monster Federation were also planning to settle accounts with Clayman.
But the names and information mentioned during their conversation shocked them even more.
"Lord Benimaru," Albis asked carefully, her expression tense, "may I ask… the Veldora you mentioned earlier… is that the Storm Dragon known as the Calamity?"
Benimaru hesitated briefly.
Rimuru had previously told everyone not to spread information about Veldora's existence. But since Rimuru himself had already mentioned it out loud moments ago, there wasn't much point hiding it now.
In the end, Benimaru simply nodded.
"Yes. That is correct."
Albis took a slow breath before continuing nervously.
"Then what you said earlier… about someone here being able to suppress Demon Lord Milim… and about an 'Awakened Demon Lord'…"
This time, both Suphia and Phobio also looked at Benimaru with tense expressions.
Perhaps others only knew Milim's power through rumors. But the Three Beastketeers had witnessed it firsthand.
In their eyes, their lord—Demon Lord Karion—had always seemed invincible.
Yet in front of Milim, he had been as fragile as a child.
One blow had gravely wounded him.
The second blow had left his life and death uncertain.
And yet just moments ago, they had heard something unbelievable.
Someone here could actually fight Milim on equal footing… even suppress the Tyrant for a short time?
"Both Lord Ren and Lord Rimuru are genuine Awakened Demon Lords," Benimaru replied calmly.
"And yes, the statement about suppressing Lady Milim is also true. We were present during that battle some time ago."
"Although someone at my level can't possibly understand how much power Lord Ren and Lady Milim were truly using… there's no doubt that Lord Ren did manage to suppress her for a brief period."
After hearing Benimaru's confirmation, the Three Beastketeers fell completely into stunned silence.
At that moment, they felt like ignorant country bumpkins who had just stepped into a world far beyond their understanding.
For the longest time, they believed that only the Ten Great Demon Lords stood at the peak of strength.
But right here in front of them sat three beings—none of whom were officially Demon Lords—whose strength was enough to overwhelm more than half of the Ten Great Demon Lords.
The realm of an Awakened Demon Lord was something even Lord Karion had never reached.
And that didn't even include the Storm Dragon Veldora… or the monster who could suppress Demon Lord Milim.
Taking a deep breath, Albis stepped forward and bowed respectfully toward the three of them.
"My lords. I am Albis, the Yellow Serpent Horn, one of the Three Beastketeers serving under Demon Lord Karion."
"I have a request to make… though I realize it may be presumptuous."
After confirming the true strength of Ren and Rimuru, Albis had already made up her mind.
With a solemn expression, she lowered her head deeply.
Their lord Karion had disappeared after Milim's attack, his fate unknown.
With only the strength of the Three Beastketeers, the chances of avenging Karion and restoring the Beast Kingdom were practically nonexistent.
Leaving aside the invincible Milim, even Clayman alone would be more than they could handle.
Which was why Albis had come to a decision.
On behalf of the Beast Kingdom of Eurazania, she requested to join Rimuru's alliance.
It was their only chance at revenge.
Thus, the coalition army was formed.
Ten thousand soldiers from the Kingdom of Falmuth.
Twenty thousand monsters from the Great Jura Forest.
Ten thousand warriors from the Beast Kingdom.
A total force of forty thousand troops gathered together.
The numbers were far smaller than the massive armies during the Orc Disaster. But every fighter assembled this time was an elite.
After all, the enemies they were preparing to face were Demon Lords.
Using the coordinates provided by Mjurran, Rimuru expended an enormous amount of magical power to teleport the entire forty-thousand-strong army to the battlefield.
Around the same time, the labyrinth fairy Ramiris arrived with urgent news.
The Walpurgis, the banquet of Demon Lords, had been called.
And the ones who initiated it were Demon Lords Milim, Clayman, and Frey.
A Walpurgis gathering could not simply be held on a whim. It required major matters to discuss and had to be initiated by multiple Demon Lords.
For newcomers like Clayman and Frey, the other Demon Lords might normally ignore them.
But if Milim was one of the initiators, then the others had no choice but to give her some face.
Ramiris had come specifically to warn Rimuru.
Because this Walpurgis had also sent invitations—to Rimuru and Ren Kuroda.
Both of them possessed the Demon Lord Seed, meaning they already held the potential to become Demon Lords.
And more importantly…
They were the very targets that the Walpurgis gathering intended to judge and eliminate.
...
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