"I understand."
Looking at Shirou Emiya's smiling expression, Rimuru understood his intent as well.
If they controlled the food supply routes, they would hold absolute initiative in trade with other nations.
"As long as you understand," Shirou Emiya said, giving a small nod.
He stopped speaking after that.
Watching Rimuru and the others continue exchanging ideas, the corner of Shirou Emiya's lips lifted slightly.
As Emiya City continued to develop, he felt increasingly at ease.
After Rimuru becomes a Demon Lord... I should be able to leave then, right?
That thought passed through his mind, accompanied by a faint smile.
...
Not long after Benimaru and Rigur returned, Rimuru set out again.
This time, his destination was the Dwarf Kingdom.
His goal was to deepen the alliance with Dwarf King Gazel.
Shirou Emiya did not accompany him.
Someone had to stay behind.
Besides, there was nothing particularly interesting in the Dwarf Kingdom anymore.
He had already visited secretly many times.
If he went along this time, he couldn't very well follow Rimuru to Night Butterfly.
That would be fatal.
Both Shion and Shuna were far too sharp.
Trying to sneak off to a nightclub behind their backs?
That was suicide.
So Shirou Emiya sent Rimuru off personally.
Rimuru took Shion, Shuna, and the Kaijin dwarf brothers with him.
They hadn't returned home in a long time.
Taking advantage of the diplomatic exchange between the two countries to visit their homeland was a good thing.
Vesta, however, chose to stay behind.
According to him, he had no face to see the Dwarf King until he achieved something of real value.
Shirou Emiya suspected otherwise.
It felt more like Vesta simply wanted to stay and continue his research.
But that wasn't a problem.
Research itself was never wrong.
After all, Shirou Emiya was doing the same thing.
He was researching how to develop a space capable of storing living beings.
The motivation was simple.
There were existing examples.
Rimuru's stomach, for one.
It could store spirits and even dragon-class existences.
Based on that, Shirou Emiya wanted to develop magic that could store people.
But that kind of thing couldn't be rushed.
He had to start from nothing.
Step by step.
Bit by bit.
During Rimuru's absence, fruits from the Beast Kingdom were delivered.
They were meant for brewing high-quality wine.
The Monster Federation was still in a largely free-range stage when it came to natural resources.
There was no centralized management.
As a result, fruit production was limited.
The amount of fine wine they could brew was also small.
Because of that, once Albis and Suphia learned about the situation, they immediately expressed their willingness to provide fruits.
Both of them loved wine.
The fact that the fruits arrived so quickly showed just how eager the Beast Kingdom was.
Not long after the fruits arrived, Rimuru returned to Emiya City.
According to him, the negotiations with the Dwarf Kingdom had gone smoothly.
There were no issues at all.
However, Shirou Emiya later learned the truth from Shuna.
Rimuru had been caught red-handed outside the palace after visiting Night Butterfly.
As punishment, he had been forced to eat Shion's cooking for an entire week.
Truly delightful.
"What's so funny about that!"
Rimuru shouted angrily as he stood at Shirou Emiya's door late at night.
"It's just getting caught, isn't it?"
"What's so funny?" Shirou Emiya replied calmly, smiling as he poured tea.
"You were forced to eat Shion's food."
"Isn't that worth laughing about?"
"You-you're too much!"
Rimuru snatched the teacup from his hand and complained.
"You must have predicted this would happen. That's why you didn't go!"
"Who knows," Shirou Emiya replied lightly, eyes drifting up to the ceiling.
"Why won't you look at me!"
Rimuru slammed the table.
This guy had definitely guessed it beforehand.
And worse, he hadn't warned him.
Looking at Rimuru's furious expression, Shirou Emiya chuckled.
"We'll talk about that later," he said.
"You didn't come knocking on my door in the middle of the night just to complain, did you?"
"Changing the subject," Rimuru muttered.
He knew exactly what Shirou Emiya was doing.
Still, there were other things he needed to discuss.
Rimuru sat back down, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.
Then he spoke quietly.
"I plan to leave Emiya City for a while."
Shirou Emiya froze.
He placed his teacup down immediately.
"Why?"
"It's related to my dreams."
Rimuru paused briefly.
"Recently, I've been having dreams."
"In them, Miss Shizu keeps calling for help."
"She's asking me to save some children."
"Children?" Shirou Emiya asked, puzzled.
"Yes. Children."
"They appear clearly in my mind."
"They were once Miss Shizu's students."
"She keeps asking me to save them."
"Maybe they've run into some kind of trouble."
"That doesn't make sense," Shirou Emiya said flatly.
"Miss Shizue Izawa is already dead."
"If she's dead, how would she know about the children's situation?"
"It's likely they're already in danger," Rimuru replied.
"And as time passes, their situation will only get worse."
"I see."
Rimuru nodded slightly, as if confirming his own conclusion.
Shirou Emiya shook his head and stood up.
"I understand," he said helplessly.
"I'll protect this place while you're gone."
"Then I'll leave it to you, Shirou."
Rimuru smiled with clear relief.
...
"What?! Lord Rimuru is going to the human world-and Lord Emiya isn't going with him?!"
Shuna's voice rang out.
"Of course not," Rimuru explained, spreading his hands.
"Shirou still has to protect this place."
"That's too dangerous," Benimaru said with a frown.
"If anything happens to Lord Rimuru, the Monster Federation will collapse."
Shirou Emiya didn't object.
Every monster here had been named by Rimuru.
If Rimuru died outside, they would definitely seek revenge until the end.
"Don't worry," Rimuru said calmly.
"I'll move discreetly."
"Don't underestimate my concealment abilities."
"Then I'll go as Lord Rimuru's guard," Shion said, stepping forward immediately.
"No," Rimuru replied.
"Setting aside your demonic aura, your horns alone are impossible to explain."
"Horns are just decorations!"
"I can suppress my demonic aura with spiritual power!"
"Then try it."
Rimuru crossed his arms.
If Shion could truly suppress her aura, there might be ways to hide a horn.
"Hraaaaaaaa!"
Instead, Shion's demonic aura surged even more violently.
"You idiot, stop it!"
Rimuru shouted.
"The building is going to break!"
Scolded sharply, Shion wilted like a deflated balloon.
Rimuru showed no mercy.
He knew very well that if he softened even slightly, this troublemaker would definitely follow him.
"Then it's decided."
"I'll just take Ranga with me."
"He can hide in my shadow."
Rimuru turned serious.
"Shirou, I'll leave Emiya City to you."
He spoke firmly.
And with that, the preparations were set.
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