'From Previous Chapter'
"If you don't want, then I can leave," I added quickly, ensuring his brother was returned to his prior state before administering the full potion.
With that said, I turned alongside Ciel, gesturing to depart.
As we began to leave, I noticed a particular look in Ciel's eyes. She seemed captivated by my villainous demeanor.
But for now, I should just focus on Kaijin.
'Continuation: Rimuru POV:'
"Hehehe, this will do the trick," I mused inwardly to myself, quite pleased with how things were going on.
"Well, so what's your decision?" I asked him casually, positioning myself near the exit.
He is on the verge of giving in. And seeing Kaijin's hesitance, I couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction. It seemed my calculated moves were paying off exactly as I had anticipated.
Good job, me!!!
I gave a shout of encouragement to myself because I am liking this situation. It is a well-executed strategy after all, just like hook-line-sinker.
Now that I think about I had created many layers of manipulation at play. First, I established contact with Kaijin, giving him a sense of hope. Then, I showed my capability to solve his problems. Finally, I created a scenario where he had no choice but choose the choice of my interest.
I think I will do a good job as a villain.
<<I absolutely agree with you, Master will be a perfect and strongest villain. But still, you don't have to create circumstances where he must choose your side.>>
And here she goes again, slipping into her motherly mode.
Well, she is not entirely wrong. It is true that I deliberately stopped the soldiers who were going to help the people injured in the cave incident, thereby causing injuries to Kaijin's brothers.
Later, after coming here, I gave Kaijin a false sense of security by offering him hope that I could help him by healing his brothers and solving his sword problem. Then, I crushed that hope by revealing that he must leave this kingdom, pledge his loyalty and alliance to me, and become my subordinate. Finally, I returned his brother to his prior state before healing him and presented him with two choices: either he and his brothers become my subordinates, or I leave. And once again, I gave him a glimmer of hope, but with a severe price.
Actually, in reality, he only has one choice, and that is to become my subordinate. Because I know that Kaijin has a deep bond with his brothers, and to save them and restore them to their former state, he can do anything. Now that I have presented him with these choices, he must choose the first option, or else his brothers won't recover, and he doesn't want that. So, he must choose the first option.
And that's exactly what I want. A clean and perfect plan. And in the end, what mattered most is the execution of a flawless plan, one that would secure my objectives without fail.
A act befitting to a great villain.
Hahahaha! All these people should bow before me, the greatest villain of all time, the Great Demon Lord: Rimuru Tempest!! Hahahaha!
I think Veldora's otaku personality is rubbing off on me.
<<It seems that I need to take some measures before master goes insane. Yes, one week of sleeping outside will do the job. Yeah, let's do that. It will make master himself again. Oops, I think I just said that out loud!>> (Thought out loud)
>>No!!!!! Ciel, I will do anything but not sleep outside!!!! Please!!! I can't sleep without cuddling you!!! Anything but that!!!<<(Desperate Rimuru)
<<Sigh* okay, but you have to compose yourself and don't start to act differently.>>
<<Okay, ma'am!!>> (Said as fast as he can)
<<But sometimes it's okay because when you do that, you look super cool!!>> (fangirl side)
Women, make up your mind already!!!! What am I supposed to do!!!
Why are women so complicated?
"I accept your proposal. I will pledge my loyalty and alliance to you and leave this kingdom to join you as your subordinate." While I was engaged in an intense battle with Ciel, Kaijin, declared his answer.
"Kaijin, you don't have to do this!" one of Kaijin's brothers said. I believe his name is Garm.
"Yes, you don't have to," echoed his other brother, whom I think is named Dord.
"Hm..hm..hm," his last brother nodded in agreement. Wait, I know who he is. He's Myrd. And is he seriously like this even in this timeline?
Say something, dude!!!
"There's no need for you to say anything. I have made up my mind, but I have one condition," Kaijin interjected, shutting down his brothers.
And what's with his condition? Well, it doesn't matter because I can fulfill every condition. So let's seal the deal.
"Go on, I am listening," I said, gesturing for him to state his condition.
"My condition is that my brothers will come with me," he said, still bowing.
Huh... Is he really serious? Did he forget that just a few moments ago I told him that his brothers can come with him?
It must be because he was too preoccupied with his thoughts and didn't hear that part. Well, no problem with the condition because I want them to come.
"Fine by me, they can come as long as they want," I said casually, as if it were no big deal.
"Then I will...." He was about to say something, but I intervened.
"Hold your horses for a moment. Let's heal your brothers first," I said, heading towards his brothers.
"Okay, then guys, be ready to become as good as new!" I announced, using three full potions on them. Instantly, their injuries healed, their missing body parts regrew, and long before they became as they were before getting injured.
Now they are fully healed, not a single scratch behind.
"We pledge our undying loyalty and alliance to you,..." After getting recovered, their first deed is pledging their loyalty to me, but it seems that I forgot to tell them my name.
"It's Rimuru, Rimuru Tempest, and here she is, my wife, Ciel Tempest," I introduced both of us to them.
"We pledge our eternal and undying loyalty and alliance to you, Sir Rimuru and Lady Ciel," they all said in unison, except Kaidou, of course.
"I see, so in that case, I, The Embodiment of Nothingness: The Ruler of Void: Rimuru Tempest, on behalf of me and my wife, Ciel Tempest, accept you as my subordinates," I majestically declared.
And just like that, a soul corridor between them and me formed, and they received my special protection like my other subordinates.
"So about your swords problem," I said, addressing the other issue.
"Ah... Yes, about that, I have to create 20 long magic swords and submit them to the kingdom by the end of the day, as per our contract. If I knew I was going to be short on magisteel, then I wouldn't have taken this contract. But that shi** minister had to say, 'Famed throughout our kingdom for your skills, can not a man of your caliber, Kaijin, complete a small task of this degree?'... he said and indirectly challenged me!!! Not to mention, this was said in front of the king! Would you forgive him? That sh*tty bastard!! And in those circumstances, I have to take this job," he explained, grumbling as he released some of his frustration.
"From the tone of your voice, it seems like you've had some small fights with that minister, but let's leave that matter. I don't want to pry too much into your personal life. So, about the sword, if you give me one already made, then I can help you," I suggested.
He looked confused for a moment, but then he went to another room and brought a magic sword.
"Here, take this. This is one of the finest swords that I have made," he said, handing me the sword.
Now that I look closely at it, it is indeed a masterpiece. He is truly a master craftsman. The sword is flawless.
But still, I can see some flaws in it. Well, with time he will become better, I suppose.
Wait, did I just contradict myself?
I think I am starting to overthink things.
"Okay then, here I go!" I said, devouring the sword and bringing it inside the [Imaginary Space] to copy it 10 times.
"And here are your swords," I announced, presenting him with 11 identical swords, one by one, each looking exactly like the other with not a single difference.
"Whoa....how did you do that? No, seeing your previous abilities, it doesn't matter how you did this, but still, to have crafted swords of this caliber, it just feels like I am not that good a craftsman," he said, examining the swords I had given him, his voice becoming subdued as he spoke.
"I was able to craft it only because you made the original sword with that quality. So don't lower yourself; you are absolutely one of the best craftsmen," I reassured him with some words of encouragement.
Well, that wasn't a lie, but not all truth either.
They seemed to be in a good mood. As I handed them the remaining swords, Kaijin's mood lit up. With the recovery of his brothers, almost all of his problems were resolved, and now they were celebrating this moment.
"Guys, I don't want to ruin your mood, but I think it would be good if Kaijin submits these swords to the minister first," I suggested to them.
"Yeah, you are right, Sir Rimuru! I shall submit these swords first, and I also need to tell the king that I have pledged my alliance to you and am going to leave the kingdom," Kaijin said, gathering the swords.
"Guys, I will be leaving now. I need to return to my duty. And Sir Rimuru, I once again thank you for healing my brothers!" Kaidou said one last time, bowing, and started heading outside.
"So guys, I should also take my leave, but before that, hey Kaidou!" I called out to Kaidou.
"Yes, Sir Rimuru?" Kaidou asked, stopping in his tracks and turning towards us.
"Take these and show them to your King," I said, handing him three vials of full potion.
"But why, Sir Rimuru?" he asked, wanting to know the reason.
"You will understand later, so for the time being, just do as I say," I instructed him.
"You healed my brothers, for that I can at least do this," he said, taking the potions from me and left.
"Guys, we will be leaving now. Tomorrow around this time, we will come here to take you. Till then, you should gather your belongings," I said to them, preparing to leave.
"Wait, Sir Rimuru!" I was about to leave, but out of nowhere, Kaijin called me.
Oh no! No! No! No! He is going to ask for that! And Ciel is here! She will definitely kill me!
Think, Rimuru! Think!
Ah... I know. I should just shut him up and leave as soon as possible!
"Kaijin, listen carefully. You are a single man, so I am not sure if you will understand or not, but for this once, if you respect me, then shut your mouth and let me leave alive! If that's it, then bye!!!" I said to Kaijin in full seriousness, and before he could utter a single word, I left.
"But I just wanted to show my gratitude."
I think I heard something, must be my imagination.
"What happened, Master? Why are you acting like this?" Ciel asked me innocently.
You know exactly what happened, woman! Now don't try to act all innocent!
But still, I am glad that I was able to leave as soon as possible.
And now why is she making this face?? Is she enjoying my this state??
Seriously, sometimes I don't understand what is going on in Ciel's head.
*Sigh* I should just forget about all this and focus on what I should do next.
Should we go on another date? Yeah, this will be a good idea. Also, in this way, her focus will shift from me.
"Ciel, since we have nothing to do until tomorrow, would you like to go on another date?" I asked her, my heart fluttering with anticipation.
Whenever I spend my time with Ciel, I don't know why, but all my thoughts become clear, all my tensions dissipate, and my mind becomes light. It feels like there is no need to think about anything; all I need to do is enjoy the current moment with Ciel by my side.
I know why. It's because we love each other. It's because we are soulmates. It's because we are inseparable. It's because we are the rulers of the Void and the entire existence. It's because we are the King and Queen of the Void and the entire existence. It's because we are husband and wife. And it's because she is my beloved Ciel.
"Yes, Master, I would be delighted," she replied, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Then allow me the privilege of taking you on a date, my Queen," I said, gently taking her hand in mine, feeling the warmth of her touch.
"Privilege granted, my King," she whispered, her voice filled with love and affection.
With that, our fingers intertwined, we embarked on a journey through the enchanting streets of Dwargon, lost in each other's company and the magic of the moment.
.
.
.
.
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*Time-Skip: One day and one delightful date between Rimuru and Ciel later.*
I think we need to go on more dates. Seriously, I enjoyed every moment of our yesterday's date, and I will cherish those memories forever.
Yeah, we definitely should go on more dates. Hm... maybe next time I should go with Shizue, or maybe both Ciel and Shizue.
I know! We should all go together, the five of us.
But for the time being, let's get back to work. But before that,
"Darling, would you like to have some fun before we head to Kaijin's place? We still have the whole day ahead of us," I suggested to Ciel as we both woke up.
Actually, after finishing our date, we returned to our inn that we booked the day we came to Dwargon.
"Master, are you sure you're not forgetting anything?" she asked, her voice inquisitive.
Hm... Am I forgetting something?
Remember... if Ciel is mentioning it, then there's gotta be something that I'm overlooking.
What could it be?
Ah... it's the meeting with King Gazel!
How could I forget that?! Also, if I'm right, then Kaijin and his brothers should have been arrested by now, and their trial is today.
But still, I want to have some more fun.
"Way to ruin the plan of having fun," I teased her.
"Well, can't do anything about it. Work is work after all," she said, slipping into her motherly mode.
"Okay! I get it! I get it! And it seems that we have some guests," as I said that, someone knocked on our room's door.
*Knock* *Knock*
Jeez, whoever it is must be impatient.
"Wait a minute, I'll answer the door!" I replied to whoever was knocking on the door.
"Let's get up, Ciel," I said and stood up, with Ciel following suit.
"I am finished, master," Ciel said once she got dressed.
As Ciel said that, I opened the door, and there on the other side was Kaidou.
"Is there something wrong?" I said, acting oblivious.
I exactly know why he is here. And if he is here, then it means that Gazel saw those potions. Well, time to set the plan in motion.
"No, no, Sir Rimuru, there are no problems. It's just that our King, His Majesty King Gazel, has asked if he can have an audience with you," he told me his reason for coming here.
While I anticipated Gazel might summon us, but I didn't expect him to request an audience directly. Nonetheless, it's not out of our expectations; there were a few scenarios where he might ask for this.
Well, as long as it sticks with the plan, then there is no need to worry.
"I see, so he saw it, huh... well then, lead the way," I said to him.
As I said, he started to lead us to Gazel.
Hm... I wonder how should I play with him.
<<Don't cause too much chaos, master.>>
And here's the usual warning. Well, if a warning has come, then there is still something left.
<<But a little fun is okay.>>
Hehehe, just as I expected, somethings can be predicted about her.
Hahaha, this will be interesting!!
So let's see what you have to offer me, King Gazel!
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And that's end. That's all for this chapter.
Guys I am out of motivation. So give me some motivation!!!!!!!!
Tell me how is the chapter in comments. It is really motivates me to write new chapters.
Word Count: 2.9k