Just as the atmosphere tightened to its limit, Demon Lord Carrion suddenly burst out laughing.
"Hahahaha! How interesting. No wonder Milim likes you so much."
His laughter shattered the tension instantly.
After laughing for a while, Carrion's expression gradually became serious. Then, he did something that caught Rimuru completely off guard.
He admitted fault.
"My apologies. It seems my subordinate lost control. This is my responsibility for failing to supervise him properly. I hope you can forgive us."
Although he did not bow, Carrion still apologized in his own way.
At the same time, he made a promise.
"This matter is on me. If you encounter trouble in the future, feel free to come find me."
Rimuru couldn't help but exclaim inwardly.
He hadn't expected Demon Lord Carrion to be this reasonable.
"After all," Shirou Emiya explained calmly through thought communication, "a Demon Lord in this world is just a profession."
"Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many Demon Lords."
"If it were a Demon Lord in the true sense, then there should only be one Demon Lord in the entire world."
When Shirou Emiya first arrived in this world, he learned a story from Ellen.
The story of the maiden and the dragon.
For some reason, the dragon that belonged to the maiden was killed. It had been her only friend. Her only companion. Its death plunged her into overwhelming grief.
In her rage, the maiden annihilated the country responsible.
Hundreds of thousands of lives were erased.
After that, she evolved into a Demon Lord.
A miracle followed.
The dragon, bound deeply to the maiden, had already died. Yet due to her evolution, it changed and completed an evolution of its own.
But the miracle ended there.
The dragon's soul had vanished at the moment of death. What reincarnated was a Chaos Dragon-an existence without will, driven purely by destruction.
It became an evil dragon.
Absolutely obedient to the maiden.
It destroyed everything without mercy.
Awakened by rage, the maiden became a Demon Lord. And drowned in grief, she could only personally seal the Chaos Dragon that had once been her pet.
Her friend.
The story ended with the maiden sealing the dragon.
From this story alone, one could see it clearly.
A Demon Lord in this world was nothing more than a profession.
A final profession.
One that required the deaths of tens of thousands of people.
The pinnacle of demonkind.
"Yes! Just like the story you once told me-The Maiden and the Dragon!"
The story Ellen once told Shirou Emiya had later been shared with Rimuru.
After all, it concealed the secret behind Demon Lords.
At first, when Shirou Emiya asked Rimuru whether he knew how to become a true Demon Lord, Rimuru had said no. Even the Great Sage had no answer.
It was through that story that Rimuru learned the truth.
The real method.
Harvesting human souls.
"Ten thousand souls, huh..."
Recalling the information the Great Sage had analyzed before, Rimuru couldn't help but sigh.
"I wonder when I'll become a true Demon Lord."
Rimuru had already made up his mind.
He wouldn't actively attack humans.
But he would never show mercy to those who attacked them.
...
"Come find me if there's trouble?"
Rimuru thought for a moment.
"Does that mean you owe me a favor?"
He looked at Demon Lord Carrion seriously.
"Then, if you're willing to make a non-aggression pact with us, I'd be very happy."
"Only that?" Carrion laughed lightly. "No problem."
"By the name of 'Demon Lord'-no, by the name of Carrion, the Lion King of the Beast Kingdom Eurazania, I swear never to draw my blade against you."
"On the condition that you do not send troops to attack us."
Carrion agreed without hesitation.
For a Demon Lord, his magnanimity was undeniable.
Of course, this was only a verbal agreement. Formal envoys would be sent later for detailed negotiations.
Rimuru wasn't sure how binding this promise truly was.
But Carrion was the master of Phobio.
Logically speaking, he should be upright as well.
At the very least, they wouldn't be interfered with for now.
As for the future-
That would depend on observation.
If they could establish diplomatic relations with the Beast Kingdom Eurazania, that would be ideal.
"There shouldn't be any problems," Rimuru thought. "Carrion seems like an upright Demon Lord. He wouldn't go back on his word."
"And look at Phobio."
"He was even willing to atone with his life so he wouldn't burden Carrion."
"He must respect Carrion deeply."
"Just like you and Benimaru," Shirou Emiya added.
"Me and Benimaru?" Rimuru paused, then nodded slowly.
Indeed, one could see a ruler's character through their subordinates.
A king who inspired such loyalty was unlikely to be someone who broke promises lightly.
As Rimuru and Shirou Emiya continued thinking through their next steps, Carrion walked over to the recovered Phobio.
"Lord Carrion!"
Phobio's emotions surged the moment he saw him.
Carrion smiled.
Then punched him straight in the stomach.
Phobio lost consciousness on the spot.
"Heh," Rimuru chuckled internally. "Looks like he got a proper scolding."
Carrion slung the unconscious Phobio over his shoulder and turned toward the forest.
"Farewell, Rimuru."
With that, his figure vanished.
"Teleportation?" Rimuru smiled. "Everyone, we've won this battle."
"Let's head back and celebrate properly."
"Yes!"
Shirou Emiya activated the Vimana, carrying everyone back.
...
After returning to Emiya City, Shirou Emiya's life returned to peace.
Every day, aside from sparring with Milim, he focused on forging.
At Milim's request, he decided to create a weapon specifically for her.
"Deceleration and power suppression, huh..."
After hearing Rimuru's proposal, Shirou Emiya thought it over.
It suited her perfectly.
As a top-tier combatant in this world, Milim didn't need a stronger weapon. As a Dragonoid, she herself was already the strongest.
Even if she needed a weapon, the current Shirou Emiya couldn't forge something that would genuinely increase her power.
"Suppressing her strength to make daily life more interesting," Shirou Emiya muttered.
That made sense.
Milim loved fighting.
But her power was overwhelming.
No ordinary monster could satisfy her.
Suppressing her strength might actually make her happier.
"I get it," Shirou Emiya nodded. "Let's do that."
With a clear direction in mind, he felt a rare sense of excitement.
"In that case, I won't disturb you," Rimuru said. "I still need to deal with diplomatic issues with the Dwarf Kingdom and the Kingdom of Burmund."
"Earlier, King Gazel even wrote to complain," Rimuru added helplessly. "Asking why I didn't seek his support against Charybdis. Said I was being too distant."
After the Charybdis incident ended, Rimuru was immediately buried under countless trivial matters.
Seeing this, Shirou Emiya felt nothing but relief.
He was grateful that he only handled military affairs and external battles.
If he had to deal with all those details like Rimuru-
He would definitely collapse.
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