Still, a little lesson ought to help them see the light. Rigurd looked at me. I nodded, just about ready to give permission, when:
“Wha?!”
“…What on…?”
“…Oh dear, some trouble?”
“Hmph. Not a problem.”
We felt a tremendous wave of pressure from outside town. Someone had broken through Shuna’s barrier around it, and soon we felt the massive aura and vast magical energy of a monster— No, likely a magic-born. Judging by this act, we doubted this guy was here to make any friends. The bovoids and equinoids might not have noticed my Lord’s Ambition, but they sure noticed this, judging by their panicked gasps.
“Such power…”
“Wh-whoa, Demon Lord, are you getting attacked by another of your kind?”
Up until now, the Forest of Jura had been protected by a pact between the demon lords. These guys here talked a big game, but they were in way over their heads. Against a real threat, they had to face up and admit how powerless they really were.
I no longer had time to deal with them. I hated to throw out the idea of having them serve as bosses—it just felt so epic to me—but there were other things to do. Instantly, I transformed into my human form and shouted “Let’s go!” to Benimaru and the rest.
“Yes sir!”
“As you say.”
I ran toward the source of the disturbance.
.........
......
…
Upon reaching the site, I saw ten or so members of Team Kurenai surrounding three men. Several security guards, gatekeepers, and Team Reborn troops were on the ground.
…Oops, I saw Gobzo among them. I was sure he gave them a fight, but it was crazy to even fight them at all. Meanwhile, the survivors were busy directing the townspeople and visitors to evacuation sites. They were acting just as they’d been trained to, which was nice. Things weren’t too chaotic yet, but I hated to see casualties this early on.
I turned to the three men behind this. One was tall, well-formed, and wore an earring. The second was enormous, a virtual slab of meat, and sported a nose ring. The third was smaller, but his frame going beyond merely “large” and venturing into “heavy” territory, and he had a lip piercing. They sported colorful hair in strange styles, which only added to their stereotypical street-punk look.
“You realize you’ve perpetrated this violence in the domain of the demon lord Rimuru?!” shouted Shion, who had been following behind me.
The earring guy stepped up, grinning fiendishly. “Outta the way. I’m not here to deal with minions. We wanted to rub out Clayman and seize his demon lord spot, but you got in our way, and we’re pissed off about it. I ain’t here to kill for fun, but mess with us, and we ain’t gonna go easy, all right?”
He was being rude and intimidating, but looking around me, I realized nobody was dead. Judging by the difference in magic force, if they hadn’t been going easy, even Team Reborn would’ve been wiped out. He must’ve been telling the truth, kind of.
Maybe they weren’t as bad as they looked—but if they wanted a fight, they’d get one. We were in the middle of my public unveiling as a demon lord. The Founder’s Festival was just around the corner, and we had merchants from all the world over going in and out. It’d be tough to let an incursion like this go without comment.
It was annoying, but so be it. I’ll just have to take them on—
“Wait, Sir Rimuru. Let me handle this.”
Shion stopped me from stepping forward. Benimaru was trying to step up, too, but I guess they had looked at each other and silently decided which would go first. The casualties among Shion’s forces were the likely decider.
“Oh, you one of the demon lord Rimuru’s aides? Dad told me about you—the ogre woman who whipped Clayman’s ass? I like it. Let’s warm up with you first—”
“Wait, Big Bro. Can we take her? You can have the demon lord.”
“Fwehhhh-heh-heh! Yes, yes! I’m getting hungry, you know. I could use a girl or two right now!”
Sounded like they were all brothers. The earring guy must’ve been the eldest, and their dad told them about not just me, but Shion and Clayman’s battle. Their father must’ve been either a demon lord or a close associate, but judging by their energy levels—each equivalent to a pre-awakened Clayman—I assumed the former.
But who? I immediately crossed Guy, Milim, Ramiris, and Luminus off the list. That left Daggrull, Deeno, or Leon…but the last two seemed pretty unlikely. Was Daggrull my prime suspect?
Shion, meanwhile, took a step forward. “Silence. Sir Rimuru is busy with his audiences right now. To save on time, I will handle all three of you at once.”
“Huh?”
“Whoa, are you picking on us?”
“I wanted to go easy on a girl, but forget it. I’m gonna make you cry, I swear.”
“Fweh-heh-heh, that sass is like a punch in the gut. I bet you’re gonna make me feel the fullest I’ve been in a while!”
I groaned. Taking on three foes more powerful than you at the same time was insanely reckless, even by Shion’s standards. I tried to stop her, but this trio was already far too worked up to call time-out. Why does Shion always get so freaked out like this…?
“B-Benimaru?”
“Just let Shion do what she wants. If we’re going easy on them, Shion is more suited to that than I am.”
…
His casual response stunned me into silence. Guess I’d just have to give up. I decided to believe she’d win and just let her have her fun.
That said, I didn’t want my town wrecked. I suggested that we all move elsewhere, and surprisingly, the trio agreed to it and followed me, curiously checking out their surroundings as
