Katsumi huffed as she finally got Benimaru back into his bed. He was swaddled up again, his arms tucked tightly to his side as he continued to wriggle around in his cocoon. Benimaru, in his horribly drunken state, had managed to fall asleep while walking back to his house, thus causing both Katsumi and himself to collapse onto the road.

"I'm never letting you drink more than two cups from now on," Katsumi said as she glared down at her red-haired friend. Her sunset eye gleamed and seemed to pierce through him, so Benimaru turned his head away like a guilty child. He wasn't that drunk was he?

"I'm not drunk," Benimaru slurred, his voice muffled by the blanket wrapped around him. Katsumi stared at him in disbelief, but gave up quickly on trying to argue with a drunken seagull.

"Yes, yes. You're as sober as a drunk Shion, Benimaru. Now sleep." Benimaru complied, closing his eyes as if actually sleeping. However, after a minute of silence, his eyes snapped open and he stared intensely at Katsumi.

"What was Rigur saying earlier?" Katsumi flicked his forehead, taking full advantage of the fact that he couldn't retaliate since he was still wrapped like a burrito.

"Nothing, just sleep off the alcohol, Benimaru."

"No, he was trying to tell you something, wasn't he?" The red-haired kijin wriggled a bit as if to loosen his blanket cage before proceeding to roll toward the edge of the bed. He successfully freed himself and stumbled to his feet on the opposite side of the bed from Katsumi. The blue-haired kijin quickly stood up as Benimaru swayed dangerously on his feet.

"He really didn't say anything much."

"But he did say something!" Benimaru insisted, stumbling his way around the bed to stand next to her. He stared down at her and, as he did so, he took notice of their height difference. A thought flashed through his mind about how delicate yet strong she looked as he towered over her.

"He really didn't say anything other than the fact that he thought I was a good friend. Now lay back down, Benimaru. I really don't want you to fall again." Instead of listening to her, he stared down at her in silence before he wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. Katsumi's face flushed, but she said nothing but gently returned the hug and patted him on the back lightly.

"I was worried that he said it before I did..."

"Said what?" Benimaru pulled away slightly to look at Katsumi. She leaned back slightly to meet his eyes, his arms locked at the small of her back and hers resting on his muscular back. Despite having hugged Benimaru before, she was incredibly aware of how close they were at that moment. It took all that was in her to hold back a blush.

"You really don't know?" Benimaru slurred out slightly. She shook her head in confusion. What was she supposed to know? Benimaru sighed and released her, flopping backwards onto the bed and throwing his arm over his eyes. "This is worse than I thought."

"Hey," Katsumi complained as she reached over and slapped his knee. "I know you're talking about me, Benimaru."

"You're so dense..." Benimaru mumbled as he shuffled around and pulled the sheets over his head. Katsumi stood by the bed glaring at him but not quite understanding what he meant exactly. How was she dense? Dense about what?

"What do you mean dense, you stupid pelican?" There was no reply from Benimaru. "Benimaru?"

She reached down and lifted the blanket back gently, only to find that Benimaru was asleep and his breathing had evened out completely. Gently, Katsumi sat down at the side of the bed and brushed his unruly red hair out of his face, lightly grazing over his black horns. Shifting ever so slightly, Benimaru turned toward her and slung an arm over her lap. She froze as her long blue hair brushed his face and caused him to scrunch his nose. Thankfully, he settled back down without waking up. Smiling, she carefully pushed her hair behind her shoulder and shuffled herself under his arm, cuddling close like she always did while adjusting her head so that her horn was pointed away from Benimaru.

"Sleep well, Benimaru," Katsumi said as she snuggled close.

~~~

The next morning, Benimaru woke up with a pounding headache, causing to release a groan of discomfort. His right arm was pinned under who he assumed to be Katsumi so he slung his left arm over his eyes to block the light. Beside him, Katsumi shuffled slightly from the sound and gently lifted herself, rubbing her eyes as she did so. Once again, she had slept soundly next to Benimaru.

"My arm is numb..." Benimaru complained, not moving his arm even an inch despite the fact that Katsumi was no longer laying on it. She stared blankly at him before purposely falling back down onto his arm. The feeling of pins and needles flared as she rolled slightly across his arm on purpose and reached her arms up to stretch. With a swift motion, he wrapped his left arm around her waist and pulled her to him so that his face and horns were pressed to her upper back. Katsumi flailed slightly and huffed as he tightened his hold to prevent her from purposely messing with his numb arm.

When the numbness faded, Benimaru relaxed his hold on her, but didn't pull away completely. His head remained rested on her back and he began to slightly nuzzle her, which caused her to squirm slightly when his horn caught her hair, causing it to brush past her neck and tickle her.

"What are you doing, Benimaru?" Katsumi complained slightly as another movement of his head cause his cold horn to graze her neck. She felt the hairs at the back of her neck stand up as shivers raced down her spine.

"I have a headache..." Benimaru whined as he continued to rub his head on her. The feeling of her soft clothes pressing against his head seemed to help ever so slightly. Either that or that calming, flowery scent she always had was helping. Which ever it was, all Benimaru knew was that she was helping his headache.

"Who told you to drink that much?" Katsumi scolded with a sigh as she pried herself out of his hold and turned in his arms.

Her eyes raked over him, taking in how his face was scrunched in pain before sighing again and pushing herself up into a sitting position. Before Benimaru could complain, she adjusted them until her thighs were pressed together with her feet to either side of her and Benimaru's head was on her lap. The rest of Benimaru was stomach down and slightly to the left of Katsumi so that his horns just barely missed her side. Without so much as a word, she gently began running her fingers through his bright red hair. Benimaru was surprised, but he relaxed shortly in her comforting hold loosely wrapped his arms back around her.

"What did you mean when you called me dense last night?" Katsumi asked after a few moments. Her gentle movements didn't stop however. Benimaru frowned slightly as he tried to recall the exact conversation last night, but the only thing he could remember was stumbling out of his house to look for Katsumi before it went black. Despite that, he had a clear idea of what he meant last night. It was just a matter of figuring out how much he spilled.

"I called you dense?" Benimaru echoed, shifting is body so that he was laying on his back and he was staring at Katsumi. She nodded.

"You called me dense and then you fell asleep. How am I dense though?" Benimaru's eyes held her dual-colored ones as if trying to figure out something.

When it was clear that she truly was clueless, Benimaru sighed and sat up, causing Katsumi to lift her hands up like she was surrendering. Quickly, he moved to swing his legs to the right side of the bed, where Katsumi was sitting closer to, and stood up. Before she could lower her hands, he gently grasped her left hand in his right and pulled her to her knees on the mattress, his left arm wrapping around her waist and pressing her to him. Due to the height of the mattress, she was just barely shorter than him, which allowed Benimaru to get even closer. Their breaths mingled as he leaned impossibly close to her, his eyes flickering down from hers to her lips and back. From their minute distance, he could almost feel the heat radiating from her face as it flushed red.

"Do you really not know how I feel?" Benimaru questioned with a whisper.

"I - W-what..." Katsumi stuttered out, clearly flustered. He smirked a bit and leaned ever so slightly forward. Much to his delight, Katsumi instinctively closed her eyes, as if welcoming a kiss from him.

Despite Benimaru's apparent confidence, he could hear his heart pounding inside his chest. After more than ten years, was there finally progress on his love? He leaned even closer, instinctively closing his eyes as well and relying on his other senses to guide him in the moment. A tingling feeling flowed through him as his lips just barely brushed hers.

However, their sweet moment was just too good to be true.

A knock at the door snapped the two of them out of the trance and Katsumi, in her panic, pushed herself away from Benimaru. Her face was flushed pure red and she purposely averted her gaze from Benimaru. Embarrassed, she pulled the sheets toward her, bundling them up and using it to cover her face. Meanwhile, Benimaru turned toward the door and glared. He was so close...

"Come in," Benimaru called with a slightly annoyed sigh. It only got worse when Rigurd came in with Rigur trailing behind. The younger hobgoblin didn't say much, but his eyes scanned the situation and narrowed on Benimaru as if having some sort of idea as to what happened. Benimaru glared back, as if daring Rigur to say something.

"Rimuru-sama asked us to come call you two," Rigurd explained as he flexed his muscles. "Hero King Gazel Dwargo is leaving soon."

"We'll be right out," Benimaru stated, trying his best to hide his annoyance at the two hobgoblins. Rigurd glanced over at Katsumi, who still had her face covered with the sheet.

"Katsumi?" Rigur called. She flinched and, without a word, quickly stood up on the bed. Not even sparing Rigur a glance, she fled out the door, dragging the blanket with her. A few seconds later, she came back, chucked the blanket back onto the bed and ran back out.

~~~

"So what is going on?" Shuna asked as she and Shion slid over to Benimaru. Katsumi had clearly been avoiding Benimaru and was stuck closer to her cousin than normal. If Souei made any move towards Benimaru, her face would flush red and she'd escape to Hakurou or Rimuru instead.

"Nothing for you to worry about," Benimaru assured with a sigh. Shuna glanced at him, then to Katsumi and then back.

"You were about to kiss her, weren't you?" she guessed with a knowing look. Shion squealed at it while Benimaru flushed a red color brighter than his hair and shook his head in denial.

"No! I wasn't! I was just..." Benimaru trailed off, not knowing what to give as an excuse since Shuna had hit the nail right on the head. She smirked triumphantly when her brother couldn't say anything back. "Alright fine."

"So what happened?" Shion asked as both her and Shuna smirked at Benimaru. "Did she pull away before you could?"

"Even worse," Benimaru shook his head. Shuna and Shion glanced worriedly at each other as their smirks dropped.

"Don't tell me she rejected you..." Shuna said cautiously. Benimaru shook his head.

"She closed her eyes and almost let me, but Rigur and his father knocked at the wrong time and frightened her." Benimaru sighed at the memory. He had been so close, but she surely couldn't be dense enough to not realize his feelings, could she?

Shuna glanced at Katsumi who was sparring with Hakurou using her claymore. Despite her movements being as graceful and enchanting as usual, even Shuna could tell that her mind was elsewhere. It was especially apparent when Hakurou whacked her upside the head with his sheathed katana for losing focus during the spar. Shuna smirked and gave Benimaru a hard smack to his back.

"Don't worry, brother. I'm sure you'll get another chance." Shuna and Shion's eyes met each other and a mischievous gleam flickered between them.

"If not, we'll make another chance for you..."

~~~

Two days passed, but Katsumi seemed impossibly aware of him at all times and made it her mission to never be alone. Had Benimaru not seen the blush on her face every time she turned away, he would've thought that she was rejecting him. However, much to Benimaru's annoyance, Rigur had now stuck himself like a parasite to Katsumi's side and, due to her oblivious nature, Katsumi hadn't pushed him away. Every time Rigur was beside Katsumi and managed to make eye contact with Benimaru, it made the red-haired kijin want to rip the smirk off his face.

Much to Benimaru's surprise and relief, however, Souei seemed to side more with him than with Rigur. Despite Katsumi's avoidance of Benimaru, it seemed that Souei had realized that it was nothing more than her realizing her feelings after all this time, so he didn't roast his red-haired friend alive after seeing Katsumi flee. Souei had even resorted to plotting with Shuna and Shion to try to find a way to force Katsumi to face her feelings and confront Benimaru, but Katsumi was too smart and escaped each plan they hatched the past couple days.

"I promise this isn't another plan of ours, Katsumi," Shuna assured. Benimaru glanced over from his position near Rimuru, noticing Shuna and Shion dragging Katsumi over to the group with Souei coming up from behind.

"And how can I be sure of that," Katsumi refuted as she tried to shake them off. Shuna and Shion held on strongly.

"C'mon. Rimuru-sama called everyone here. Souei spotted some of those pegasus knights from Dwargon heading over here earlier." Shion nodded her head toward the horizon where multiple pegasus-mounted knights were indeed headed their way. Gathered at the edge of the city were all sorts of townspeople, from the kijin to dwarves to goblins. Katsumi glared at them but nodded. To her embarrassment though, they stuck her right next to Benimaru. Before she could run away again, he reached out and grasped her wrist, gently enough to not hurt her yet strongly enough to hold her in place.

"I'm starting to think you hate me," Benimaru whispered lowly to her, feigning sadness as he stared straight ahead. From beside him, he felt her glare holes through him.

"Shut up, you stupid fody," she hissed jokingly. "I do hate you."

"If you hated me, you wouldn't have let me get so close to you, now would you have, angelfish?" Her face flushed and Benimaru smiled innocently at her, causing her to reach her free hand over and whack him on his bicep. She muttered something under her breath, but before he could ask her to repeat it, Gazel Dwargo made his appearance with a brown, wriggling sack.

"I'm here, Rimuru!" Gazel greeted in his usual gruff voice.

"What brings you here this time?" Rimuru asked a bit exasperated. The king had just left a few days ago after all.

"I'm here to give you all a gift," Gazel said. He turned and nodded to two of the guards, who held the brown sack. They unceremoniously tossed it towards Rimuru, the sack, which actually turned out to be a brown cloth, unraveled, to reveal a knocked out Vesta.

"That's Vesta!" Kaijin stated obviously. Gazel stared down at the passed out Vesta, nodded at Kaijin's statement.

"It seemed a waste to leave such a talented man doing nothing, but I cannot allow him to work in my service. Use him as you wish." Rimuru stared up at Gazel, shocked that he was handing a former minister over so easily.

"My King..." Kaijin protested, "That would allow Vesta's knowledge to leave the Dwarves!"

"Says the man who left the dwarves himself?" Gazel asked flatly. Kaijin deflated at his rebuttal. Gazel sighed and looked at Rimuru.

"That is what this alliance is for. Make this land you have chose to inhabit a leader in new and unique skills!" Gazel demanded of Rimuru. Vesta stirred on the ground, sitting up with a defeated posture as he realized where he was.

"Vesta..." the king called. "Devote yourself to studying here."

Vesta bowed his head towards Gazel, vowing to do as commanded and to not disappoint the king. He then turned towards Rimuru and Kaijin, apologizing for his actions back in Dwargon and asking for permission to work in the Jura Tempest Federation with a bowed head.

"Having one more talented researcher around will be a big help," Kaijin said aloud to himself. He turned towards Rimuru and raised a hand to gesture to himself. "Rimuru, if anything bad happens, I'll take responsibility. Please have faith in me and show him mercy." Kaijin bowed.

"If it's okay with you, Kaijin, I have no objections," Rimuru concluded with a smile. "Welcome aboard, Vesta."

"Thank you!" Vesta almost cried as he bowed his head low to the ground. "I am unworthy, but I will give my utmost effort for you!"

As Vesta vowed his allegiance to Rimuru, the king decided that the matter was settled and turned to leave. With only a short 'farewell,' the king and his royal army took off, heading back to Dwargon. From behind Rimuru, the goblins were clapping. Mixed in with the were Gabiru and his three loyal guards, acting as if they fit right into the mix.

"Now, then..." Rimuru said as he turned around to face Gabiru. "What are you doing here?"

Gabiru flinched as Rimuru turned his attention on him and posed a proud stance.

"Well... I, Gabiru, have arrived in hopes that I may be of some help to you!" Gabiru declared. As always his three guards began praising him.

"I'll cut him up," Shion offered. Katsumi barely spared Gabiru a glance and instead opted to mess with Benimaru by sticking her tongue out at him and pulling her hand out of his grasp. Before he could grab it back, she locked her hands together behind her back and turned so that her back was facing away from Benimaru.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait!" Gabiru quickly yelled out. He held his hands out in front of him in surrender.

"We hoped you would permit us to join your ranks!" he reworded as the purple-haired kijin reluctantly backed off. Gabiru and his guards knelt down on one knee in front of Rimuru. "On my word, we will prove useful to you, so please!"

"Please!" his three guards echoed.

"My brother has seen the error of his ways. Please grant him the opportunity to atone." The kijin all glanced over to the vaguely familiar voice. It was the female lizardman guard that Souei had saved during the start of their battle in the marshland.

"The captain of the guard is here, too?" Rimuru voiced. The female lizard knelt down on one knee beside her brother.

"Unlike my brother, I have no been disowned," she bluntly explained. "My father, Abiru, sent me here to gain more experience."

"More experience in combat or in love?" Katsumi retorted with a slight scoff, albeit she only said it loud enough for Benimaru to hear.

"Oh, so you're sensitive about this when it comes to other people but you're denser than a rock when it comes to yourself?" Benimaru asked as he flicked her on her forehead right beside her single white horn. She retaliated with a flick of her own as she tried to hide her own blush.

"Hush, Benimaru. It's too easy to tell what her intentions are. Look at how she keeps looking at Souei! I can promise you right now that I don't approve of her. She's not strong enough to stand by my cousin." Katsumi glared at her, completely missing the exasperated look that Benimaru sent her way.

"Was I not obvious enough?" Benimaru asked in shock.

"Hm?" Katsumi hummed, clearly not paying attention to what he said. Benimaru sighed, lifting a hand to his temple like he was getting a headache but didn't bother repeating himself.

"You didn't follow me because you missed me?!" Gabiru yelled at his sister in shock.

"No," she stated without skipping a beat. "I do respect you, dear brother, but right now, Souei-dono is ..."

Katsumi drowned at the female lizardman guard, already having figured out her true intentions. She made her way to stand behind her cousin with Benimaru trailing behind raggedly.

"Cousin, please don't tell me you have any semblance of feelings toward her..." Souei blinked in surprise at Katsumi's comment.

"I thought you wouldn't figure it out."

"How could I not when it's that obvious?"

Souei glanced at Benimaru who shrugged and shook his head in defeat. He then glanced back to Katsumi who stared innocently at him. Reaching a hand out, he ruffled her light blue hair roughly, causing her to whine a bit.

"You still have a long way to go, cousin," Souei said as he finally released her. She huffed and fixed herself. "I don't have feelings for her, I promise. I don't think I can ever fall for her."

"Good," Katsumi finalized with a smile. She then turned back toward Benimaru who glanced at her uneasily. She smiled an innocent smile before reaching a hand for his wrist and began dragging him along back toward Rimuru who had just finished naming the lizardmen (and women) who had snuck in with the crowd. Benimaru sent a pleading glance for freedom to Souei, but the blue-haired male stared blankly at him before turning away. If he wanted to court Katsumi, Benimaru had to know that Souei wouldn't save him from her under any non-threatening circumstance.

With the female lizardman guard as the first to be named, she and her servants were given the names Soka, Toka, Saika, Nanso and Hokuso. Gabiru was also renamed by Rimuru, though his name remained Gabiru. In the end, all of Gabiru's brethren also were named by Rimuru, starting with his three most loyal guards. All the lizardmen brethren evolved to Dragonnewts, though some of them ended up looking more human than others.

"Benimaru, Souei, Katsumi," Rimuru called. The three of them quickly made their way to Rimuru and bowed slightly. "These dragonnewts want to join our ranks, what do you three think?'

"They want to join our ranks?" Souei echoed, glancing over the group. Katsumi crossed her arms loosely as she gave each of them a visual assessment. They didn't seem like the type who could keep up with her swordsmanship despite looking older than her by at least a year or two. Her sword style was wielding a double-handed blade, a claymore, and these dragonnewts didn't seem the type to head into battle like that judging by how they were unable to hold a strong stance against the orcs.

"I won't take them," Katsumi finalized as she bowed her head to Rimuru. "My style of combat is not fit for them, and thus they will learn nothing from me and I will gain nothing from them."

"I also don't need them," Benimaru agreed with a nod, though he didn't provide much of an explanation.

"May I use them as I wish?" Souei asked after a few more seconds.

"Sure," Rimuru replied easily. "Train them up as you see fit."

"As you command, Rimuru-sama." Souei bowed his head.

"I'll work my hardest for you!" Soka cut in excitedly, looking up at Souei with gleaming eyes. Katsumi clicked her tongue in annoyance, seeing Soka get all glittery-eyed over her cousin. Perhaps she wouldn't have been so annoyed had she given off the impression that she was stronger and could hold her own. The last thing Katsumi wanted her cousin to do was to have to protect an incompetent lizard, which Soka had been assessed to be. Surely there had to be someone out there who Souei could fall for that was more his league.

~~~

While Souei was dealing with the new dragonnewt recruits he had received, Katsumi was busy fleeing from Benimaru. The red-haired male had made it his goal to capture her to find out what she had said the seconds before Gazel Dwargo made an appearance. On the other hand, the blue-haired female had made it her goal to make sure he never found out.

"C'mon Katsumi. You're not going to win this," Benimaru threatened as they stood directly across from each other with a large tree in between them. If Benimaru took a step to the right, she took a step to the left. They just kept going in circles

Her eyes flickered around, looking for an escape route. Taking this chance, Benimaru feigned left and launched himself to the right around the tree. Katsumi screeched in panic before bursting into laughter, slipping just out of his grasp and back toward the forestline. Quickly turning back, he used his skill [Shadow Movement] to appear right in front of Katsumi before she could get away. Katsumi skidded to a halt and huffed as she placed her hands on her hips.

"That's cheating, Benimaru," she argued. He took a step toward her, towering over her slightly as she stubbornly stood her ground and glared up at him with her heterochromia eyes.

"How's that cheating?" he asked with a small chuckle. He gently picked up a strand of Katsumi's light blue hair and twirled it around his finger.

"It just is," she huffed unreasonably.

Benimaru swiftly looped his right arm around Katsumi to the small of her back and pulled her closer while using his left hand to lift her face up slightly. He blushed slightly at their close proximity, but forced himself to push down the redness in his face as much as possible. He had been so close to kissing her last time that he just couldn't hold himself back. She had been so receptive of it that there was no way she'd reject him, right?

He leaned forward again, this time not dragging it out too much in case of interruptions, yet delaying it just long enough to make her feel a bit antsy. They both had their eyes closed as their lips just barely brushed each other, like the last time. Another centimeter and they would've been kissing.

Yet, once again, the world was not on their side.

An unfamiliar, yet terrifying aura popped up in another nearby open field, causing Katsumi to pull away again, albeit this time she remained wrapped up in Benimaru's arms instead of pushing him away like last time. They glanced at each other as the realization set in that this aura was that of a Demon Lord. Quickly, in a flash, the two of them used [Shadow Movement], of which Souei and Rimuru were kind enough to teach all the kijin, to make their way.

They arrived just in time to see Shion bring her sword down on the pink Demon Lord as Ranga grabbed Rimuru and started running to find a secure location. To their shock, Shion's blade was easily stopped by the barely dressed girl.

"Oh, you want to play with me?" the Demon Lord chuckled darkly. She smirked at Shion, tossed her blade to the side and threw Shion away with a swipe of her hand. Souei quickly used this chance to wrap her in thread.

"You may be a Demon Lord, but no one can escape the binding of these threads," Souei commented. Benimaru glanced at Katsumi who nodded and, from behind her, a barrage of ice-tipped blades formed. They launched themselves toward the cocoon, piercing through it at just the right locations to travel to the center where the demon lord was without breaking the cocoon.

"Burn to ash!" Benimaru joined in with a ball of [Hell Flare], igniting the Demon Lord who was held in place by Souei in a sphere of fire.

"I hope that at least singed her," Benimaru said while staring at the flames. They knew that even as Kijin, they could never wish to defeat a Demon Lord. The difference in power was just too great.

"Wow, this is amazing!" They heard her voice laugh from the flames. Wind blew the flames outwards until the flames died out, revealing a perfectly unharmed Demon Lord. "Any other Demon Lord might not have escaped an attack like that in one piece! But it's not gonna work on me!"

She let out a funnel of wind, expanding outwards in all directions. It was strong enough to tear even the largest tree out of the ground. Benimaru, Souei and Katsumi all tried to stand their ground but the three of them were blown back with little effort on the Demon Lord's part. Shion laid a ways behind them, still trembling in pain from the force of the demon lord's original attack against her.

"You okay, Shion?" Rimuru asked as he walked up to her with a healing potion.

"Rimuru-sama, please flee from here," Benimaru requested, his eyes trained on the demon lord.

"We will... handle this..." Souei added on weakly.

"We'll hold her back until you can escape safely, Rimuru-sama," Katsumi included, leaning heavily on her claymore that she stabbed into the ground.

"Here's some for you guys, too," Rimuru said as he tossed some health potions over to the three of them. "Drink those and rest. I'll take care of this."

"What's this?" The demon lord said darkly as Rimuru stepped up to face her. She stood at the center of the crater she had created just from the force of the tornado that threw the Kijin away. "Haven't played enough yet? Very well. I'll play with you some more."

"Rimuru-sama..." Benimaru stated in worry.

"Once you give up, it's all over, so you gotta do what you can," Rimuru explained as he made his way to the crater. "Don't get your hopes up."

Albeit reluctantly, the four Kijin nodded and retreated by Ranga, recovering their injuries and standing by for Rimuru to call them.

"Oh, You're going to face me?" The demon lord, Milim, smirked up at Rimuru.

"If you're so confident, why not taste one of my attacks?" Rimuru asked, looking down at her from the border of the crater. He carefully slide down the side. Milim threw her head back and laughed.

"Very well! Sounds interesting!" She stopped laughing and looked at Rimuru with amused, yet serious eyes. "But if it doesn't work, you must swear to become my subordinate."

"Fine," Rimuru agreed with a confident smile. Rimuru quickly braced himself, throwing his right arm back without drawing his blade. In his hand formed a golden orb of honey. Rimuru launched himself forward towards Milim and managed to successfully shove the honey into her mouth. The Kijin stared on at him in shock. Silence rang through the clearing as Rimuru and Milim of them disengaged.

Suddenly, Milim turned towards Rimuru with stars in her eyes.

"What in the world is this?!" she screamed out excitedly. "I've never had anything so delicious!"

"What's wrong, Demon Lord Milim?" Rimuru asked as she licked her lips to get any last drop of the honey. "If you admit defeat to me now, I'd be willing to give you this, too."

Rimuru held in his hand another small orb of honey, the golden color instantly drawing Milim in. She drooled as she leaned forward, desperately wanting more.

"I want it!" She whined, conflicted. "But to admit defeat..."

"Mm, that's tasty!" Rimuru purposely said loudly as he drank the orb of honey that he had used to grab Milim's attention. Milim screamed.

The Kijin and Ranga had made their way into the crater with Rimuru and Milim and stared at her in confusion and shock. Who knew that the Demon Lord Milim was so childish? They hadn't expected her personality to be like this in the slightest.

"Whoops, looks like I'm running low now," Rimuru purposely said, trying to get her to surrender.

"W-Wait, wait!" Milim called desperately, waving her arms at Rimuru. "I have a proposal! A draw! Why don't we call it a draw this time?! We'll forget all of this happened!"

"Oh-ho?" Rimuru said, acting interested in her proposal.

"O-Of course, that's not all! I swear never to mess with any of you ever again!" Milim declared.

I win, Rimuru thought. Outwardly, he only smiled at Milim.

"Very well, I'll accept your terms. We'll call it a draw this time." With that said, Rimuru tossed her a canister of honey. She happily caught it, cheering at her prize.

~~~

The four Kijin, Ranga and Rimuru , who was in his slime form, watched in silent disbelief as Milim sat on a low wall at the edge of the village, happily eating the honey Rimuru had given to her. They didn't know what to say to the childish demon lord who had so graciously decided to spare their village for a jar of honey.

"Hey," she called to Rimuru as she slurped up another drip of honey. "Don't you ever think of becoming a Demon Lord?"

"Why should I put myself through that kind of hassle?" Rimuru asked easily back.

"Huh? But you'd be a Demon Lord!" Milim shouted in surprise, as if never expecting to find anyone who didn't aim to become a demon lord. "Aren't they awesome? Doesn't everyone want to be one?"

"Hell no," Rimuru refused again. "Does something good happen when you become a demon lord?" Most of the Kijin had lost interest, though they had to politely stand there since this was a demon lord after all.

"Strong opponents come from all over to fight you!" Milim said proudly. "It's fun!"

"I get plenty of that already. Not interested," Rimiuru declined for a third time.

"What?! Then what do you even enjoy in life?"

"All kinds of things. I've got a lot to do. It's crazy," Rimuru rebutted. "Is there anything fun about being a Demon Lord besides fighting?"

"Well, no..." Milim trailed off, a bit sad, before she smirked and leaned towards Rimuru. "But you get to boss Majin and Humans around!" Rimuru stared at her.

"Doesn't that just mean you're bored?" Milim gasped loudly and dramatically at Rimuru's spot on jest.

"Well, I should head back. Take care going home." Rimuru turned around, heading towards the rest of the Kijin, but was stopped by Milim picking him up.

"Wait! You're doing something more fun than being a Demon Lord, aren't you?" She began shaking Rimuru up and down. The kijin and Ranga didn't dare get involved despite the fact that Rimuru was being treated roughly.

"No fair! No fair! No fair!" She stretched Rimuru out horizontally. "Now I'm mad!"

"I don't know what you want me to-" Rimuru was interrupted as Milim locked him in her arms and squeezed as tightly as she could.

"Tell me what it is! And then let me join you! Take me to your village!" The Kijin watched her with various forms of worried glances at Rimuru.

"Fine, fine. But I have one condition," Rimuru relented as he finally was able to slip out of her grasp. "From now on, you'll call me 'Rimuru-san.'"

"Screw that! You should address me with respect!" Milim put her hands on her hip, glaring defiantly at Rimuru. "You will call me 'Milim-sama!'"

"Okay, let's do this. I'll call you 'Milim,' and you can call me 'Rimuru.' How's that?" he compromised. Milim agreed, albeit reluctantly, muttering about how the only others to call her by her name were the other Demon Lords. The Kijin could only stand by and do their best to hide their exasperation at Milim.

"So I guess we're friends from now on," Rimuru said. "I'll show you my village now, but no causing any commotion without my permission. Promise me, Milim." Milim glanced over at the Kijin and Ranga who had yet to move from their positions.

"Of course! I promise Rimuru!"

I shall go inform Rigurd at once. Souei voiced to Rimuru. Without another word, he disappeared. However, in his place came Gabiru, which only made Katsumi roll her eyes at the arrogant lizard.

"Oh? And who is this little runt?" The remaining Kijin and Ranga all flinched and tensed. Gabiru had no idea what he had just done. Milim rushed forward, putting a whole lot of strength into her left arm as she reared it back and sent Gabiru flying down the road. The nearby goblins watched in horror as Gabiru skidded down the middle of the road.

"Who are you calling a runt? You want to be murdered?" Milim asked darkly as the rest of the group followed behind her quietly.

"He sort of deserved that one," Katsumi whispered to Benimaru. He snickered slightly at her comment, but quickly composed himself before Milim could notice. Who knew what the childish demon lord would think had she seen him laughing...

"Listen up!" Milim announced. "I'm in a very good mood right now! That's why I'm letting you off the hook! It won't happen again, so watch your step!"

Gabiru laid still for a moment before he rose up with a startled yell.

"I saw my father waving at me from across the river..."

"Your father's alive, dork," Rimuru refuted dryly.

"Ah?" Gabiru flinched and looked at Rimuru before noticing Milim again. "By the way, who's this little - " Milim glared at him before he could finish the sentence. "I mean... this young lady?"

"This is Milim. She's a Demon Lord, apparently."

"A Demon Lord?!" Gabiru screeched.

"Can I just punch him another time?" Katsumi whispered to Benimaru. He shook his head and took her hand in his, pinching her palm ever so slightly as if to scold her. She blushed when he didn't release her hand, but she was too busy hiding her face to notice that Benimaru also was blushing lightly.

"Listen, Milim, you can't just slug someone right away when you get mad," Rimuru rebuked from Shion's arms.

"It's his fault for making me mad," Milim stubbornly argued back. "Besides, that was just my way of saying hello!"

"Slugging people is not saying hello. No more of that," Rimuru commanded. Milim pouted but said nothing more.

~~~

Later that night, all the Kijin, Kaijin, Rigurd, Milim and Rimuru were in the baths. The boys and girls were separated, exept for Rimuru who was dragged into the girls side by Milim and Shion. Shuna and Katsumi joined the three of them shortly in the water.

"What is this?" Milim asked as she relaxed in the warm water. "It feels fantastic!"

"Myrd of the three dwarf brothers designed it for me," Rimuru explained. "It's my beloved hot spring, flowing freely from the source."

"Amazing! You can swim in here!" Milim said as she swam by. Shion and Shuna were sitting at the edge next to each other while Katsumi was a little farther away, simply relaxing in the hot water. After a few seconds of watching Milim, Shion began to fidget.

"You shouldn't swim in the bath." Shuna scolded Milim. Shion gasped, looking at Shuna sadly since she also wanted to swim. She glanced at her with pleading eyes.

"Don't do it," Shuna told Shion firmly, causing the purple Kijin to deflate.

As the four girls soaked in the bath, Rimuru made his way out to converse about the Demon Lords with the rest of the guys. Shion and Shuna scooted over by Katsumi, and nudged her slightly, causing her to look at them in confusion.

"Yes?" she asked as she brushed her blue hair out of her face.

"We heard from a little bird that perhaps our youngest Kijin was one of the first to kiss someone?" Shuna said with a smirk.

"And we also heard that that someone may just be a red-haired childhood friend?" Shion added in. Katsumi flushed red and quickly shook her head.

"W-We didn't kiss," she stumbled out, embarrassed. Her cheeks flared at the memory of the two times they had been so close to actually kissing, but they were interrupted both times.

"You didn't?" Shion and Shuna asked in shock. They glanced at each other before Shuna sighed.

"That idiot brother of mine..." Shuna complained as she relaxed slightly into the water. "No need to worry over it though, Katsumi. Benimaru's head over heels for you."

"D-don't say that," Katsumi insisted as she blushed even more, she submerged the lower half of her face in the water, leaving out just her eyes and nose to breathe. Shuna and Shion giggled at their youngest kijin, but said nothing more. Teasing her anymore might mean that she could faint in the warm water.

~~~

Meanwhile, Rimuru had met up with the rest of the guys, who had finished soaking in the baths themselves and were all dressed in blue-grey robes. Their impromptu meeting in the common room of the bath house consisted of Rigurd, Kaijin, Souei, Benimaru and Hakurou.

"Rimuru-sama," Rigurd called.

"Oh... What's up?" Rimuru replied. He was sitting between Rigurd and Kaijin, with the three kijin across from them.

"It's about Milim-sama," Rigurd said seriously. "I never imagined a Demon Lord would take the initiative in coming here."

"Yeah, but she did promise not to cause any commotion without my permission," Rimuru defended.

"Yes, but... what's more concerning is what the other Demon Lords will do," Kaijin brought up, a bit worried. The Kijin all nodded in agreement. "There are several Demon Lords and they're always keeping each other in check. Your declaration that Milim-sama is our friend means this village is now under her protection. Under normal circumstances, that might be a good thing, but..." Kaijin trailed off.

"Rimuru-sama, you hold the position of Supreme Ruler," Hakurou continued for Kaijin. "In other words, it will appear to the other Demon Lords that the Great Forest of Jura has forged an alliance with the Demon Lord Milim."

"The Demon Lord Milim will instantly gain more influence, upsetting the balance among the Demon Lords," Benimaru explained further.

"But in reality, there is no way we could stop the Demon Lord Milim," Rigurd said. Benimaru looked down slightly, disappointed in himself.

"Her strength was on a completely different level," Benimaru agreed, "If not for Rimuru-sama, we wouldn't be alive right now."

"Precisely," Souei added, staring forwards stoically. "If the other Demon Lords become hostile, would we not have a better chance against them?"

The entire room went silent as Souei's words sunk in. If Rimuru hadn't befriended Milim and it had been another demon lord to come, their village would possibly be done for. In addition, with Milim now on their side, they could rest a bit easier knowing that one of the strongest demon lords was protecting their village.

"On that note..." Rigurd shouted after a few moments of silence. "We shall entrust everything to Rimuru-sama, the one she has deemed her 'bestie!'"

"No objections," all three Kijin said in unison as they bowed their heads.

"You dumped it all on me?!" Rimuru shouted in shock.

"Milim-sama is one of the most powerful of all Demon Lords," Hakurou explained a bit more to Rimuru. "She is known as a Demon Lord that everyone should avoid making an enemy of. We have no choice but to entrust everything to Rimuru-sama."

Hakurou ended his explanation with a slight laugh, though Rimuru sure was wondering if it was more of an excuse.

"The girls should be done by now," Benimaru said as he stood up from his cushion. Straightening out his robe, he glanced toward the exit of their little meeting room. "Since this discussion is over, I'll head out first." Without another comment, he bowed his head to Rimuru and left the rest of them in silence.

"He's got it bad, doesn't he?" Rimuru asked rhetorically. The rest of them nodded their heads in agreement.

~~~

Katsumi, with her hair still slightly damp, decided it would be a good time for a walk while she waited for Benimaru. Despite her embarrassment two days prior, she would rather deal with that than nightmares, so she would crawl in the blanket beside Benimaru when he was asleep. At least, when she thought he was asleep. He couldn't sleep comfortably without her there, but he knew she was shy, and so he feigned unconsciousness to allow her to feel more comfortable.

Shivering slightly, Katsumi wrapped her arms around herself to conserve body heat. Perhaps it wasn't the best idea to go walking at night when her body temperature was already considerably lower due to her abilities over water. If Benimaru was here, surely he could warm her up with ease. Katsumi blushed again at the thought of Benimaru. No way that her childhood friend, the young master, could like her in that way, right? It was too good to be true. Then again, he did almost kiss her, and twice for that matter. Katsumi shook her head, her blue hair swaying at the motion.

"Katsumi," someone called. She lifted her head to see Rigur standing in front of her, wringing his hands.

"Rigur," she greeted. She was getting a sense of deja vu. Hadn't Rigur sought her out at night like this when Gazel Dwargo first came by this town?

"I, I want to tell you something, Katsumi," Rigur stuttered out, his eyes trained on the ground. She tilted her head slightly in confusion but nodded anyway.

"Sure, what is it, Rigur?"

Rigur stayed silent for a moment, refusing to lift his eyes to meet hers. She was about to ask if he was okay when he finally spoke, but the words that came out of his mouth were nothing she expected.

"I like you, Katsumi. Can you be my lover?"

Katsumi flinched, staring at Rigur in shock.

"W-what?" she stuttered out in shock. "I-I'm sorry but uhm..." Katsumi trailed off, not knowing how to handle this situation. She didn't want to hurt Rigur, but if there was something she was sure of, it was that toward Rigur, she didn't feel the same way that she did for Benimaru. And, despite running away from it, she knew that she regarded Benimaru more as a lover than a friend at the moment.

"It's okay, Katsumi, I know," Rigur said sadly when she couldn't say anything else. "Just reject me formally, I've known how you feel toward Benimaru for a long time now..."

"I'm so sorry, Rigur..." Katsumi trailed off slightly, feeling horrible when she saw how heartbroken Rigur looked. "I'm so sorry, but the person I love is Benimaru, Rigur. I can't return your feelings..."

Rigur nodded, turning his head away to hide the hurt. He knew it was coming, but it still hurt nonetheless.

"You should go to him and tell him then," Rigur said, feigning a happy tone despite his heartache. "He's probably been waiting to hear those words for at least ten years now."

"I'm so sorry, Rigur..." Katsumi repeated. There was a lump in her throat as she noticed the dejected tone hidden in his facade. She didn't know what to do since Rigur was technically the first to confess to her. Not even Benimaru had said anything and it's not like they were officially lovers so she felt even worse to turn Rigur down. However, she still knew it would be absolutely horrible of her to lead him on as well, and thus she gave him an honest answer: she liked Benimaru.

"Katsumi?" The two of them turned slightly at the call, noticing Benimaru in the distance. Rigur smiled at Katsumi, albeit it was a sad smile.

"Go to him, Katsumi," Rigur said when he noticed her inch toward Benimaru, yet hesitate and look back at him. Katsumi muttered one last apology before shuffling away toward the red-haired kijin.

"Katsumi?" Benimaru questioned as she reached him and immediately wrapped her arms around him for a hug. He returned the hug, allowing her to bury her face into his clothing as much as possible without her horn tearing through it. "What happened Katsumi?"

"Rigur confessed..." Katsumi said after a moment. Benimaru froze and gently pried her off of him and held her so that he could stare into her eyes. The mismatched colors bore into him and he could detect a hint of sadness in them.

"And what did you say, Katsumi?" Benimaru asked gently, almost afraid of what she was going to say. Katsumi turned her eyes downward and swallowed forcibly.

"I-I told him that I can't accept his feelings because I liked someone else..." she said, her cheeks flushing a little red though it was barely visible in the nighttime.

"And who would that be?" Benimaru prodded. Katsumi said nothing and instead turned her head away. Benimaru noticed, taking a step back, which made Katsumi snap her head up and meet his eyes. Despite the hint of anxiety in his red eyes, there was determination too.

"I love you, Katsumi. I've loved you for years now. Will you accept my feelings and become my lover?" Katsumi, shell-shocked could only nod at first before words began to form.

"I love you too, Benimaru..." she said quietly, the blush overtaking her face as a bright smile broke out on Benimaru's face. He reached out for her and gently pulled her into his arms and used his right hand to lift her head to face him in their close proximity.

"I've waited so long for those worse, I think I deserve a little more for how long you made me wait, don't you?" Benimaru teased as he leaned in. She blushed, but didn't bother trying to move away. Her words were stuck in her throat again as she felt her heart race. Benimaru's heart was racing just as fast though and they could both feel it. Leaning in even closer, Benimaru tilted his head slightly so their horns and noses wouldn't hit one another. As he got close enough to have their lips brush against each other, as they did the first two times they came close to kissing, Katsumi closed her eyes, causing Benimaru to smirk. Before anything else could interrupt them, Benimaru closed the gap and pressed his lips against hers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hey, everyone! Sorry for the long wait!

As some of y'all might have seen, I explained a bit about how I found myself in a rut when it came to writing so I took a break. I also just moved to my college apartment this past week so it's been a bit hectic and this chapter is definitely out later than I wanted it to be out. But it's out now so hopefully y'all like it.

Also, I'm a little worried cause I started feeling under the weather lately though I'm not sure if it's because of the stress of moving or because of something more serious like the coronavirus. Hopefully it's just stress but I got a test done just in case. 

As always, let me know what y'all think of this chapter. Despite falling asleep half way through writing this, I think I actually enjoyed it a lot and I think that break did me some good in terms of refreshing my mind and helping me get back into writing. 

Thank you and stay healthy!
ThePurpleDragon