"Cough, cough."
Shizue looked a bit awkward.
After all, Rin was now her direct superior.
Elyun was badmouthing her boss right in front of her. Shizue found it extremely difficult to handle.
"Don't cry, Elyun."
"Didn't I come back safely?"
Shizue appeared very calm. She didn't tell the three that she had become Rin's person.
She only said that Rin was a very powerful monster.
He had sought her out because he had a task he needed her to complete.
And after fulfilling Rin's request, she left the Great Forest safely.
"Is that person the cause of the Great Forest's anomaly?"
Elyun and the others couldn't see through Rin's true nature. They just regarded him as the source of the current disaster.
"You could say that."
When it came to matters regarding the Great Forest and the Monster Nation, Shizue didn't dare speak carelessly before Rin made anything public.
Information was just as important in this world as in any other.
Rin planned to deal with internal affairs first, completely unify the Great Forest, and only then consider contact with the outside world.
So Shizue naturally had to keep his secrets.
"The Great Forest has become very dangerous."
Shizue advised the three to abandon their exploration mission and report the information they had to the guild leader.
No matter how good-tempered Rin was.
If someone kept provoking him, he might really have Treyni take action and turn the intruders into fertilizer for the Great Forest.
As for Elyun and her group...
At most, they were a B+ ranked small team.
They had no idea what kind of power was now in the Great Forest.
Not to mention Rin's other monsters.
Just Rin's strength alone, plus the Frost Dragon and Veldora, who had both officially joined and grown even stronger than before, was enough to instantly annihilate the entire Cardinal World.
A mere Kingdom of Blumund.
It was nowhere near qualified to test the waters of this unfathomable Great Forest.
In fact, even if the three of them insisted, she would still forcibly drag them out of here.
At least within her sight, Shizue could protect them with a clear conscience.
"Mm-hmm!"
"The Great Forest is too terrifying. We'll never take on such a request again."
Fortunately, Elyun wasn't someone who couldn't tell right from wrong. She immediately agreed to Shizue's suggestion and abandoned the request.
So, Shizue took the three of them and set off toward the Kingdom of Blumund.
Swish, swish, swish...
In the Harpy Queendom of Fulbrosia, in Frey's office, the Sky Queen was handling documents at her desk with help from two maids.
"Getting stronger and stronger."
Her hands never stopped, but her thoughts were elsewhere.
With Rin having subdued the two great Dragon Gods, the Monster Nation's power had already reached the apex of the Cardinal World.
Undoubtedly, Rin now possessed the power to either destroy or rule the world.
"It's just a shame. My master doesn't seem interested in conquest."
Frey was actually indifferent to that fact.
She was a monster, not a human.
Monsters were simple creatures. Aside from their instinctual desire to evolve, they didn't carry the complicated ambitions humans had.
This difference lay in their respective lifespans.
Monsters had the ability to evolve.
And each evolution pushed their life level higher, increasing their lifespan as well.
Like the Elf race, commonly referred to as the Long-Eared Race.
They could easily live for thousands of years.
Their long lives meant their concept of time was vastly different from that of humans.
The same applied to most monsters.
The Oni Clan could live over 300 years on average.
After evolving, living thousands of years was nothing.
Humans were more numerous, but unfortunately, they were short-lived.
Monsters could spend decades or even centuries plotting something. Humans didn't have that luxury.
They were often more impatient.
Sometimes, they would even launch reckless attacks against enemies they couldn't possibly beat.
"Your Majesty?"
"Ah, it's nothing."
Frey finished the final document and gestured for the maid to leave.
"By the way, how's Milim doing lately?"
"Lady Milim is very satisfied with the food and desserts you arranged."
"Hmm, that's good then."
Frey smiled slightly. Milim really was the easiest Demon Lord to deal with.
"If only humans were as simple as Milim."
But that was just wishful thinking. Frey knew human nature too well.
"Creatures like humans won't just give up their prey."
The Great Jura Forest was the center of the continent. Especially for the Western Nations, it was no exaggeration to call it their economic lifeline.
The Kingdom of Falmuth and the Kingdom of Englassia.
These two nations would undoubtedly set their sights on the Great Forest.
"Foolish human nobles."
Frey turned around and looked out over the vast wilderness from the high cliff.
"You have no idea what kind of terrifying abyssal beast your provocations are going to awaken."
Rin wasn't the type to silently endure.
Frey understood this better than anyone.
I have to prepare myself.
Frey still wanted to win Rin's favor, and a great opportunity was now in front of her.
Since Rin had no plans to target the Sorcerous Dynasty just yet...
Then why not start with Falmuth and the other territories under rival Demon Lords?
If I can conquer the nearby countries and present them to him...
As this thought crossed her mind, Frey's lips couldn't help but curl into a faint smile.
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle~
In a lavishly decorated room, the Puppet King Clayman was trying to repair the communication crystal in front of him.
Unfortunately, no matter how much he adjusted it, there was still no image from the other side.
"What is that idiot Gelmud doing?!"
Clayman slumped back in his chair, face extremely grim.
"The forest is covered in thick fog. Whose doing is this?"
"Did another Demon Lord make a move?"
"Or has the legendary Veldora been revived..."
The changes in the Great Jura Forest over the past month had completely thrown off Clayman's predictions.
His original plans were already falling apart.
The Oni race had suddenly risen to power.
They started gathering the various races in the forest.
Even though the Lizardmen rejected the Oni's invitation, the Oni didn't retaliate.
"Is that really the Oni race?"
Thinking about it, Clayman's understanding was starting to waver.
"Those muscleheads actually endured the Lizardmen's provocation and let them go?"
Whether or not others believed it, Clayman certainly didn't.
(To be continued.)