Inside the office on the Ninth Floor.
Herohero sat in his chair, his body transformed into a humanoid slime while carefully controlling the level of corrosion on his surface.
The mucus that formed his face writhed constantly.
Crimson eyes appeared one after another across it, alongside mouths filled with sharp fangs, covering the entire surface.
This was the manifestation of the dragon traits he had obtained.
As time passed, his control over the power of dragons had grown increasingly refined.
Combined with the fact that he had devoured thirty million souls, his own strength had undergone another transformation.
On top of his already maxed level, he gained an additional boost.
His level had risen from the original Lv100 to Lv100+1.
Corrosion and decay.
Under his guidance, these two magical forces with similar properties gradually began to interact and intertwine.
A brand new type of power was quietly being born.
His sparring match with Naohara had unintentionally accelerated the process.
Perhaps it was stimulated by the power of [Catastrophe], or perhaps it was the transformation brought about by battle.
Either way, the result had progressed far more smoothly than he expected.
A new form of magic had been born.
Herohero named it the power of [Corruption].
It retained the advantages of both original forces while gaining an even more troublesome level of aggression.
Although it still could not compare to the power of [Catastrophe], it was more than sufficient for Herohero.
After all, he had never expected to defeat that monster Naohara.
Under the influence of the [Dragonslayer] class effect, even though they were both World Bosses, the moment Herohero gained dragon traits his chances against Naohara had actually become lower than before.
"Still, it was worth it."
Herohero thought to himself.
Even if he felt somewhat helpless about it, if he were given another choice he would still fuse with the dragon traits.
Wild Magic that rivaled World-Class Items was simply too useful.
Just look at how envious Momonga had been.
Thinking of Momonga's jealous expression earlier, Herohero could not help smiling inwardly.
He then picked up the documents lying on the desk.
Leisurely, he began reading through them and making corrections.
The files mostly contained routine matters, though some issues were slightly tricky.
For Momonga, these might require several days to process, but for Herohero they were nothing special.
The many eyes covering his face moved rapidly across the pages.
He barely needed to think. After reading once, several tentacles immediately picked up pens and began writing down solutions.
In some places, he even thoughtfully added notes.
As a former office worker who had once worked so much overtime that he nearly died from exhaustion, he was far more professional at handling documents than Naohara or Momonga.
The reason he dumped everything onto Momonga was simply because he wanted to slack off.
He could handle the work perfectly well. He just did not feel like doing it.
Of course, Momonga absolutely could not find out about that.
Otherwise, Momonga would definitely grind his teeth in frustration and start thinking something terrifying like finding an opportunity to trick Herohero into handling government affairs for a few days.
"Done. Another fulfilling day."
At that moment, the office door opened.
Herohero, who had already set down his pen as if he had expected it, waved his hand.
A plate of "snacks" appeared.
He casually grabbed one and tossed it toward the doorway.
Naohara, who had just walked in, caught it easily. A sticky sensation spread across his hand.
"Hey Naohara, standing outside for so long must have been tiring."
Herohero picked up a wriggling "snack," brought it to the mouth on his face, and bit down hard. A platinum colored "jam" slowly dripped down.
"I did not want to interrupt your work. I am very strict about separating work from personal matters."
Naohara pulled out a chair and slumped into it in an extremely lazy posture.
"Naohara-sama."
Standing half a step behind Herohero, Albedo and Solution gave a respectful bow.
"Hmm. You two have been working hard."
Naohara glanced at them. His gaze paused briefly on Solution, who had now reached level seventy eight, before shifting toward Albedo.
"Albedo, the Sorcerer Kingdom and Nazarick have both been making big moves lately. You must be buried in work."
Naohara spoke with a smile.
"You give me too much credit. Easing the burdens of the Supreme Beings is this subordinate's duty."
Albedo replied with a bright smile, though a trace of doubt flickered through her eyes.
She felt that Naohara-sama was implying something more.
"That may be true, but it is still important to balance work and rest once in a while."
"Take some time off, Albedo. You need a proper break."
"For example, why not visit your sister Nigredo at the newly built orphanage in the Sorcerer Kingdom?"
"…Understood."
Naohara withdrew his gaze as he watched Albedo leave.
"Give it a try. It tastes pretty good."
Herohero spoke up at that moment.
He had also sensed that something about the exchange just now was a little off.
Everything had looked perfectly normal on the surface, yet it still felt like there had been some extra meaning behind it this time.
Still, he only kept that thought to himself and did not bring it up.
Instead, he acted as though nothing had happened and smoothly continued the conversation.
Naohara probably had his own reasons.
In the world of adults, there was no need to dig into everything.
If Naohara wanted to say it, he would hear it eventually.
"Your tastes really are getting stranger and stranger."
Naohara looked at the "snack" in his hand.
The fact that Herohero could even come up with this kind of way to eat something really showed he was getting more and more bizarre.
After hesitating for a moment, Naohara still took a bite.
"Tasting all kinds of [snacks] is one of my few hobbies."
Herohero tossed another "snack" into his mouth and casually handed one to Solution beside him.
"Well, as long as you are happy."
Naohara shrugged and did not linger on the topic.
In any case, the one suffering was not him, but the Platinum Dragon Lord.
What he had said just now was only an offhand comment.
"How are the preparations on the Elder Coffin Dragon Lord's side coming along?"
Naohara placed the documents Pandora had organized onto the desk and asked casually.
"Not bad. At this rate, it should be within about half a month."
"You know what Momonga's situation is like. He is different from us. Everything has to be absolutely foolproof, so the preparations are more complicated."
"And we already have enough experience for the third [Caloric Stone], so that can serve as insurance too."
Herohero picked up the documents and spoke as he read through them, casually tossing another "snack" into his mouth.
"The Caloric Stone, huh? That is good news. And with Cocytus's side nearly finished as well, we will be able to handle even the worst-case scenario."
Naohara thought it over.
When it came to the sacrificial ritual, they had considered every tiny detail, all because they were afraid something might happen to Momonga.
"All that is left now is to wait."
"Even failure does not matter, as long as Momonga is safe."
"After all… we have all the time in the world."