Katsumi woke up with a start, sweat rolling down the side of her face as she tried to even out her breathing. The sky outside was still dark with only the various lights of the night owls of the village. Myrd, one of the dwarves in the village, had led her to a hut after Rimuru had named them. Apparently. all the ogres had their own huts nearby. Myrd was a mystery to Katsumi, and she couldn't see to communicate with him all that well. Somehow, he got his message across, but all he did was hum and nod or shake his head.

Flipping the sheets off of her, Katsumi dressed herself into her blue kimono that the Princess had so nicely cleaned up for her and clipped the blue flower Benimaru had given her all those years ago. There was no way that she could sleep now. Not after that nightmare she had.

Since the night of the ogre village attack, she hadn't had a night free from the nightmares. The Orc General would stand over their dead bodies and insist that she was the one that killed her parents. She had these nightmares every night to the point that she started to believe the General's words. This last one was even worse, as she dreamt of the night her parents left her. However, instead of saying how much they loved Katsumi, they blamed her for their death.

Katsumi splashed some water onto her face, hoping the cold water would make her forget the nightmares. When it didn't help all that much, she picked up her claymore and strapped it to her back, heading out of her home and down to the field. The village was silent minus the occasional bird, and the moon was still high in the sky. If she had to guess, she probably only slept for three hours or so.

When she reached the field, Katsumi unsheathed her sword and began training with it. Despite the sword now being longer than she was tall, she found that it wasn't difficult to wield it at all. Perhaps the additional magicules had made it easier for her, but she was just glad that she didn't have to give up the sword that her parents had left her.

The blue-haired girl practiced for hours until the sun began to rise and the village came to life. Myrd was in the process of upgrading houses from the fabric huts to the wooden cabins, so the workers were up bright and early and had begun their tasks. The slight bustle of the village slowly grew louder as the sun continued to rise. When the sun had fully risen well above the horizon, Katsumi finally stopped training, sheathing her sword on the scabbard on her back and making her way into the village.

"Good morning, Katsumi," Rigur said as he and the goblin riders headed out to hunt for the morning. "Did you just wake up?"

"Good morning, Rigur," she greeted with a smile. "I just woke up. Are you headed out?"

"Yes, we're hoping to find a knight spider to have for dinner tonight. We've been craving it recently after tasting it a few days ago with you." Katsumi giggled and nodded.

"I hope you find it then." She was about to turn away, but then sheepishly looked at Rigur. "Do you perhaps know where the Young Master is?"

"Young Master? You mean Benimaru?" Katsumi nodded. "I think he's at the main hall. Just head down the middle and it should be right down the path."

Katsumi thanked the goblin and wished them luck as they left to search for a Knight Spider before she headed off in the direction Rigur had told her. As she walked, the other villagers would sometimes turn and stare since her movements were incredibly graceful. Despite carrying a large sword, the blue-haired girl walked almost as if she was gliding. In addition, she took the time to greet the villagers with a smile, which just made them love her even more.

Sure enough, the main hall was hard to miss as it was centered right at the end of the path. The land beside it look empty, which Katsumi supposed were in case they decided to expand this building. The dwarves truly were talented and it was obvious by the structure of the houses, which were a mix of wood and a few stone sections here and there. The houses in the ogre village had been entirely made of wood and were mostly only single story.

Peeking her head through the doorway, Katsumi saw her cousin and the young master sitting across the table from each other. Her dual-colored eyes gleamed at the sight of them and she happily entered. They appeared to have just finished eating their breakfast.

"Morning, Katsumi," the red-haired kijin greeted as he pulled out a chair beside him for her to sit. She gladly took the offer, relaxing in the wooden seat after detaching her claymore and resting it on the back wall. Benimaru left his arm resting on the back of her chair as she reached over and stole his cup of water.

"Morning, young master. Morning, cousin," she greeted as she finished the water quickly before Benimaru had the time to snatch it back. Souei nodded in reply while finishing up his own meal.

"My water..." Benimaru complained as she handed him back the empty cup. He held it upside down and pouted as not even a drop of water came out of the cup. Katsumi simply smiled cheekily at him as he glared at her. "This is why you're a fish. You breathe water, you catfish."

"If I breathe water, am I supposed to be suffocating now?" she asked while letting out an amused breath of air. Her heterochromia eyes seemed to gleam, despite the hint of exhaustion present in them. "I'm pretty sure I'm breathing air right now, dumb demon duck."

"What in the world is a demon duck?"

"A giant duck with tiny little wings. Like a T-Rex but a bird."

"So it's a dinosaur?"

"No, it's a bird."

"But you just said it's like a T-Rex."

"Yea but I also said it's a bird."

"Why do the two of you always do this?" Souei interrupted their banter as he swallowed the last bite of food.

"Do what?" Benimaru asked, turning to face the blue-haired male after childishly sticking his tongue out at Katsumi. Despite him not looking at her, she repeated the gesture before standing up to gather all the empty plates.

"I swear you two studied the types of birds and fish so that you could insult each other," Souei complained as he pushed his plate across the table to her. He could've taken it himself, but she was wriggling her fingers as she reached across the table, trying to reach the plate sitting in front of him.

"I didn't specially study them. I just came across them," Benimaru denied with a confident smirk.

"Don't lie; I saw a book on fish species in your study." Benimaru's smirk turned into a glare at Katsumi as she smiled and walked toward the kitchen with the dirty plates. His glare dropped, but his gaze remained on the blue-haired, dual-colored eyed girl until she disappeared in the doorway.

As he turned his gaze from Katsumi to Souei, he flinched as he saw Souei's suspicious look aimed at him. Souei had watched the red-haired young master's eyes follow his cousin with a suspicious tone of softness or longing.

"Why are you looking at her like that?" Souei asked him, narrowing his eyes as Benimaru turned his head to avoid his gaze.

"What look?"

"You..." Souei trailed off, glaring at the young master as he came to the conclusion on his own. "I won't allow it."

"What do you mean you won't allow it?!" Benimaru asked a bit frantically as he spun back to face Souei. If her cousin didn't approve, it would just be that much harder to win her over. Souei sighed as Benimaru's reaction only confirmed his own conclusion. He thought back to a question the pink-haired princess had asked him back in the ogre village.

So when do you think they'll be getting married?

"I won't allow it," he repeated firmly. Perhaps Shuna had already known of her brother's feelings when she asked that question. Souei shivered at the thought of Benimaru and his cousin marrying.

Benimaru slumped on the table, laying his forehead on the cool, wooden surface. He worked so hard to keep it from her cousin for all this time, yet for some reason he had managed to pick it up from a single gaze that Benimaru had directed toward her.

"Won't allow what?" Katsumi asked as she came back from washing their plates. She returned to her seat beside the slumped Benimaru. Katsumi didn't quite understand why he seemed down, but in case his abilities were causing him pain again, she reached for his hand and began to transfer some of her energy over. At the feeling of her soft palm over his, he lifted his head, sending Souei a quick smirk before laying his head down again as if to play his role as a sick man.

"Nothing," Souei quickly lied. "Why don't you come sit beside me?"

"What's wrong with this seat?" she asked, tilting her head in question.

"I saw a spider crawling up the leg of the chair earlier," Souei lied, knowing that she despised the small creatures. Depite being perfectly okay with taking down and even consuming Knight Spiders, the blue-haired girl surprisingly hated their smaller versions. At his comment, she let go of Benimaru's hand, leaping into the air and causing the chair to skip back.

"Why didn't you say so sooner?!" Katsumi whined as she began dusting herself off. She shivered at the thought of the small, eight legged creature. "I can't stay here knowing I was sitting on a seat where one of those tiny, creepy looking things was."

"Come join us for lunch later since you missed breakfast," Benimaru called as she quickly escaped the main hall.

"I'll think about it," she replied with a laugh as her long blue hair disappeared out the doorway. Benimaru stiffened once he realized that he was now left alone with Souei, the cousin of the very girl he loved who didn't approve. Quickly, the red-haired kijin made an excuse before slipping out the door and away from Souei's glare.

~~~

"I swear, you two didn't move," Katsumi said as she returned at lunch time. Souei and Benimaru were sat at the exact same spot they had been this morning. The only difference was that they were joined by Hakurou, who was sat to Benimaru's left side, and Benimaru and Hakurou had a cup of tea in front of them. Katsumi greeted him quickly before sitting down next to her cousin, directly across from Hakurou.

"We moved," Benimaru said simply, leaning back slightly on his chair as Katsumi rolled her eyes.

"Yea, probably just to the kitchen to get food, you goose."

"I'll have you know that I actually went out with the Goblin Riders earlier," Benimaru said as he chucked the last piece of bread that he had been snacking on at her. She caught it in her mouth and smirked, knowing that he meant for it to hit her on the head instead.

The four of them sat around, joking and talking. Well, more like three of them since Hakurou mainly just remained quiet while drinking his tea. Souei was occasionally dragged into the conversation by his two childhood friends. Their random bouts of insults and Souei's protective glares only stopped when Rimuru made his entrance into the hall.

"Oh, hello, Rimuru-sama," Benimaru greeted. Souei simply bowed his head at Rimuru while Katsumi smiled and waved happily.

"Have you come to eat?" Hakurou asked.

"Yeah. Shion said she cooked me a meal," Rimuru replied lightly, a bit excited.

Hearing this, all four of the kijin that were sitting flinched and froze. Their expressions darkened at the thought of Shion cooking. Back at the ogre village, they had the honor of tasting her meals before, and the end result was a case of food poisoning throughout the village that Katsumi had to deal with. However, despite knowing this, none of them dared to comment on her cooking ability knowing that Shion had a temper shorter than a bomb fuse.

The purple haired kijin placed Rimuru at the head of the table and stood back as Rimuru invited the other Kijin to eat with him, unaware of the tension that appeared when he had mentioned Shion's cooking

"Want to join me, guys?" Rimuru asked the group of stiff Kijin. He hadn't read the mood and realized that none of them were meeting his gaze clearly.

"Oh, I'm not really hungry..." Benimaru excused himself.

"Yes, we'll just have tea." Hakurou quickly backed.

"I already ate lunch," Katsumi lied with a smile.

"I will go out and scout the surrounding area," Souei said as he activated his [Body Double] skill. He and his doubles disappeared shortly after the announcement.

With Souei gone, Rimuru looked towards the three seated Kijin who blatantly avoided his gaze. Katsumi was fiddling with her fingers as she kept her head down and Benimaru and Hakurou straight up were facing the doorway.

"I'll bring it out, then." Shion bowed and made her way to the back kitchen. Rimuru used his [Mimic] to assume his human form, but he sighed as he watched Benimaru. His reaction sure was suspicious, and he was even sweating heavily. Benimaru was fine just a second ago. Katsumi was a bit better at hiding her panic, but even her sudden tension made Rimuru worry a bit. Despite not having known her for long, he knew that the blue-haired girl was usually very bubbly.

I wonder why the guys reacted that way... Rimuru trailed off in thought. Is it because, even though Shion looks really capable, it's going to end up being that old trope?

"I've returned!" Shion's voice disrupted Rimuru's thoughts.

"Please, help yourself!" She said happily as she placed down a goopy purple mess in front of Rimuru. He blanched.

She's not capable at all!

The sound of a growling stomach brought Rimuru's attention off of the mess that Shion insisted was food. It turned out that it was Benimaru's stomach that was growling in hunger. Rimuru gave him a deadpan look. Across from him and Hakurou, Katsumi had somehow managed to get her hands on a loaf of bread and was secretly trying to eat it while avoiding Rimuru and Shion's gazes.

'Not hungry,' they said! Rimuru thought as he glared at Benimaru and Katsumi who still refused to look at Rimuru. They all ran away because they knew she couldn't cook!

"Rimuru-sama, help yourself!" Shion insisted, holding out a wrapped spoon for Rimuru.

Hey, you! Look at me! How dare you just casually sip that tea?! Rimuru projected to Benimaru telepathically. Benimaru said nothing and continued drinking.

And the old geezer's completely erased his presence! Hey!

"Go on, Rimuru-sama," Shion insisted again while bringing the spoon closer to Rimuru.

Forgive me, Rimuru-sama. Benimaru thought towards Rimuru.

Those who eat that and survive another day will be undefeatable, Katsumi noted mentally.

Consider this training, Hakurou added on in thought.

As Rimuru was staring down his newest enemy, Gobta and another goblin made their way in. Katsumi greeted them quietly, but didn't dare bring attention toward her or the newcomers. Certainly, Shion would have something to say if she saw her sneakily eating bread after declining her homecooked meal.

"Please, before it gets cold." Shion insisted one more time. This time, Rimuru picked up the spoon and unwrapped it while staring down in horror.

"H-here I go, then..." he said hesitantly.

Well, hey, it's not like it's poison... Rimuru tried to keep his thoughts positive. I won't die or -

His thoughts were cut off as he picked up a spoonful of the 'food' and swore there was a face in the goop that smiled back up at him.

Okay, relax. It looks like it's possessed, but it's just my imagination! Right, it's just... that! A simulacrum! The tendency to see a face in anything with three distinctly visible points.

The goop growled up at him while Shion watched him expectantly.

Help me, Great Sage! Rimuru pleaded. The great sage assured him that if he closed his eyes and inserted the spoon at an angle from the right, he would not die. Rimuru wasn't quite sure what the Great Sage said, but he did as hold and was met with a sound he wasn't expecting.

Mrgh? Rimuru opened his eyes to see that he had shoved the spoon straight into Gobta's mouth. The unfortunate goblin had just been walking by. As Gobta swallowed the gulp of 'food' he jumped back, as if hit by lightning, and then proceeded to start rolling on the ground. Rimuru watched Gobta in horror. The poor goblin started spinning in circles on the floor, turning purple and foaming at the mouth before at last he stopped moving. Benimaru, Katsumi and Hakurou who sat silently could only close their eyes and pray for Gobta to rest in peace.

The entire room was silent.

"Oh, dear." Shion looked away, feigning innocence.

"Shion," Rimuru said without looking at her. She jumped and stood straight while facing Rimuru. "Next time you make food to serve to someone else, get Benimaru's approval first."

Benimaru flinched at Rimuru's command and looked over in shock

That's just cruel, Rimuru-sama! He complained mentally while staring at Rimuru with wide eyes

Don't blame me. You're her supervisor now. Rimuru thought back while sticking his tongue out at Benimaru.

"Katsumi is a better chef, so perhaps she should be in charge of Shion's cooking," Benimaru tried to pass off. Katsumi's eyes widened and she leaned across the table to glared at Benimaru.

"Don't drag me into this with you," she hissed quietly at him. "Shion's cooking is hopeless!"

"If I'm going down, you're coming down with me," Benimaru muttered back, staying out of earshot of the purple-haired kijin.

"Both of you can supervise her," Rimuru decided once the two of them had stopped whispering. Benimaru smirked triumphantly while Katsumi whimpered slightly and sat back down in her seat. Surely, she would die at the hands of Shion's concoctions one day.

~~~

Despite the looming threat of the orc attack, the days passed by fairly peacefully in the goblin village. The Kijin got along with the rest of the villagers extremely well and had taken up their individual roles. Shuna had her workshop and Kurobe had the forge. Shion was Rimuru's secretary and bodyguard while Hakurou had taken it upon himself to train the goblins in combat. Benimaru became a leader in combat and Katsumi helped to heal the villagers. The only thing weighing on their minds now, aside from the impending orc army, was the fact that Katsumi clearly was having some issues with sleeping.

Every morning, Katsumi appeared more tired than when she had supposedly gone to bed. She'd meet up with the rest of the Kijin around late morning and claim that she had just woken up when clearly she hadn't look rested since they had been in the ogre village. Benimaru was especially worried since she continued to check up on him and make sure his powers were under control despite looking like she could collapse at any second.

"What time have you really been sleeping, Katsumi?" Benimaru asked as he stood beside her. Katsumi was sitting on a chair in the clinic that Rimuru had set up for her, her head resting against the wall. She had just finished seeing the minor injuries of some of the goblins, yet she felt like she had just run a marathon. Perhaps training for hours starting at three in the morning wasn't the best idea, but what could she do? She'd rather work herself to death than see the images of her dead parents over and over.

"I go to sleep probably around the time you do?" she said, not really lying.

"And what time is that?" Benimaru sat down at corner of the desk that Rimuru had placed in the room, one of his feet touching the ground while the other dangled beside Katsumi.

"Around midnight." Katsumi looked at Benimaru and smiled, trying to hide how tired she truly was, but Benimaru saw right through it. He clicked his tongue and gently pulled Katsumi so that her head was now resting on his thigh while he gently combed her hair down with his fingers.

"What time have you been waking up?" he asked. She didn't reply for a second, which caused him to glance down at her.

"I get up when I see you and the rest of the kijin," she lied after a few seconds, as she always did. Benimaru shook his head.

"I know you don't get up that late, Katsumi. When do you actually get up?" Katsumi said nothing, simply letting him stroke her hair as she rested her head. She wouldn't sleep because the second she did, she'd have nightmares again. She'd see her parents' dead bodies and hear their accusation.

"I get up around three in the morning," she finally admitted after Benimaru repeated his question again.

"Three?!" Benimaru parroted in shock. Three hours of sleep a night was not enough. "Why do you only sleep for three hours a night?!"

"I don't want to wake up after just three hours either," she muttered quietly. If she could, she'd sleep more, but three hours a night of hearing her parents blame her was all she could take.

"Why can't you just go back to sleep?" Benimaru asked her as he stared worriedly down.

"I just don't feel tired," she tried to lie again. Katsumi knew that if she told him she was having nightmares every time she tried to sleep, he'd be worried out of his mind for her. The rest of them already had enough on their plates with the whole orc situation. They didn't need to know about her nightmares.

"Stop trying to lie to me, Katsumi," Benimaru voiced in frustration. How could he sleep well at night knowing that the girl he loved wasn't able to rest?

"Just don't worry about me," she replied, stifling a yawn with her head still against Benimaru's thigh.

"Are you exhausting your powers too much?" Katsumi shook her head.

"Are you being woken up by people who need to be treated?" Another no.

"Are you having nightmares?" Katsumi hesitated for a second, and then shook her head again. Ah, so she's having nightmares.

"I'm fine, young master," she said as she lifted her head up. He gently pressed her head back down, forcing her to rest as much as possible before someone else came in with an injury. Rimuru could heal them of course with a potion, but it was wasteful for minor injuries that Katsumi could easily take care of.

"Rimuru-sama gave me a name. Why don't you ever use it?" Benimaru asked with a huff, temporarily letting the topic of her lack of sleep escape. She clearly seemed like she didn't want to talk about it. Despite being worried out of his mind for her, he didn't want to stress her out by making her recall whatever had been plaguing her at night. "I'm not the young master anymore. There is no village for me to lead."

"There may not be a village, but there are still six of us who need your guidance, young master," she replied, slightly playing with his fingers as he began to stroke her hair again.

"Can't you at least call me by my name?"

"Only if you say you love me."

"What?!" Benimaru blushed heavily. What was she asking him to do? Did she perhaps...

"Impossible, isn't it?" she laughed. Benimaru glared down at her, realizing that she hadn't caught onto his feelings yet. "It's weird to call you by your name after calling you 'young master' for years. About as awkward for me to say it as for you to say that you love me."

"But if I say it, you will call me by my name?" Benimaru asked, the blush not dying down completely. She nodded, albeit clearly not expecting him to do it. Benimaru smirked, leaning down so that he was right next to her ear and whispered.

"I love you, Katsumi."

As soon as he said it, she sat up in surprise that he actually went through with it and he quickly hopped off the table and turned away to hide his blushing face. Katsumi adorned her own blush, though she wasn't quite sure why him saying it made it sound almost real. It was just a joke, right?

Before she could ask, another group of goblins with minor injuries came into the little clinic of hers. Benimaru took this chance to escape and quickly made his way to the door, making sure that Katsumi wasn't able to see him. Right before he left, she called out to him.

"I keep my promises, Benimaru." Her giggle followed afterward before it died down with minor chatter regarding the goblins' injuries. At that moment, Benimaru had to admit that hearing his given name sounding from his Little Blue was the most beautiful thing he had heard.

~~~

The next morning, as soon as Katsumi finished up training and met up with the rest of the kijin in the main hall, Rimuru and Rigurd burst in and quickly told them to follow. Apparently, an envoy of Lizardmen had arrived at the edge of the village. Souei quickly excused himself, saying that he would be of better use scouting around the village in case the orcs came while the rest of the kijin were meeting with the envoy. Rimuru excused him, Kurobe and Shuna to go to their respective tasks since the two latter were not very combat oriented. The rest of the kijin followed with Shion leading the group while holding Rimuru.

It wasn't long before they all arrived, though they came face to face with a block of Lizardmen without a clear leader.

"Which one's the envoy?" Rimuru asked staring at the group of lizardmen. Suddenly, they all started pounding their spears. The block of Lizardmen parted down the middle, allowing for their leader to ride his dinosaur-looking steed down the middle. His actions had an added dramatic flare in them. Their leader raised a hand, silencing the lizardmen before he jumped off his mount and landed in front of Rimuru.

"I am Gabiru of the Lizardmen," he announced proudly. "You will all serve under me. Consider this a great honor!" He struck a pose as two lizardmen used their shields as spotlights and the rest of the lizardmen were clapping shouting their praises. The kijin, Rimuru and Rigurd only stared at them in confusion.

"Remember him well. This is the man who will be the next chieftain of the Lizardmen!" one of the soldiers announced "Bow down!"

Everyone, not including the lizardmen, only stared at the army in front of them with deadpan looks as if asking what was going on. As Gabiru continued standing there proudly, Rimuru's rage grew at his sheer nerve to ask them to submit. Simultaneously, he felt Shion's rage as well as she squeezed the life out of him. The rest of the kijin and Rigurd simply glared at the insolent lizard.

"Shion-san, please stop!" Rimuru pleaded as Shion squeezed him tightly. "You're gonna make this slime way too slim!" Thankfully for Rimuru, Benimaru saved him and was now holding him while Shion apologized over and over. Katsumi was laughing a bit as she stood by Benimaru, smoothing out any small sections on the slime that were out of place due to Shion wringing Rimuru in her rage. To any outsider, it simply looked like Rimuru and his group were straight up ignoring Gabiru and his army.

"Ahem," Rigurd coughed, making Gabiru take his attention off of himself and to the Goblin King. "Forgive me... You called yourself Gabiru, yes? This request to serve you is rather sudden..."

"Good grief," Gabiru said as he shook his head. "Must I spell it out for you? You've heard the news, have you not?"

"What news?" Rigurd asked confused. He was really the only one trying to talk with Gabiru as the rest of them had officially lost interest in the conversation. Shion had managed to convince Rimuru to be held by her again as she smiled sheepishly up at Benimaru. From beside Benimaru, Katsumi was leaning against him, feeling a bit fatigued as she had been the last few days. Benimaru would glance down at her every so often in worry and kept asking her if she was okay, to which she would reply with a yes. Hakurou was silent in the back, but clearly focused more on Benimaru, Katsumi and Shion than Gabiru.

"The news that those Orc pigs are invading the Great Forest of Jura," Gabiru announced, bringing the attention back to him. All the Kijin looked at Gabiru as their breath hitched. Orcs? As in the ones that had attacked their village?

"Which is why it would best suit you to become my men. I, Gabiru, will protect you weaklings from the threat of the Orcs!" he continued, striking another pose.

"Weaklings!" he said again as he looked at Rigur. The Goblin King was no mere goblin anymore and the muscles he so dearly liked to emphasize bulged out of his clothing.

"Weaklings..." Gabiru's eyes went next to the two male Kijin who were standing around, their aura making it clear that they could wipe out the entire lizardmen army in less than five seconds. Benimaru's glare deepened as he looked at them

"Weaklings?" Lastly, Gabiru's eyes went to the two female Kijin, both with fairly large breasts. Shion's breasts were exposed, making them easy to gawk at. Katsumi's on the other hand were covered extremely well by the blue Kimono she was wearing, but it was obvious that they weren't small. Her dual-colored eyes glared as she realized where he was looking.

"Wow..." Gabiru said focusing on their chest, his eyes flickering between the two females. As he continued to stare, Katsumi's glare deepened before she turned her body slightly so that he couldn't stare. At the same time, she stepped a bit behind Benimaru, using him to shield her from Gabiru's dirty gaze. Benimaru, noticing her movement, stepped in front of her more to cover her and also intensified his glare at the lizard. Gabiru coughed slightly and regrouped with the lizardmen behind him.

"I don't see any Goblins." Gabiru said to his group confused.

"This was supposed to be a Goblin village," one of his subordinates responded.

"In fact, I don't see anyone weak around here..." another subordinate replied. They discussed among themselves before Gabiru once again stood in front of the group.

"Ahem!" he coughed. "I've heard that there are those among you who have tamed Direwolves. I will make those of you who have officers in my army. Bring them to me."

All the Kijin glared at him and his command. Shion's grip also tightened on Rimuru. Katsumi was muttering curses while faint droplets of water began to form in the faint shape of a blade behind her. Benimaru looked at Rimuru and gave him the brightest, happiest smile anyone had seen.

"Can I kill him?" Benimaru asked.

"Sure!" Rimuru replied happily, responding to Benimaru's aura. Without having to be told twice, Benimaru started walking up to Gabiru, cracking his knuckles.

"Wait, no! No! No! Everyone calm down!" Rimuru shouted after Benimaru desperately. Reluctantly, Benimaru returned to Katsumi and Rimuru's side, clearly unhappy with being called back. Katsumi wasn't as easy to hold back, so Benimaru was forced to snap her out of her rage by sending a small flicker of his flaming energy to her. She yelped at the feeling, almost like an electric shock, but it worked and she turned around and slapped Benimaru's chest in joking anger.

"Um... We didn't exactly tame the Direwolves." Rimuru responded to Gabiru after everyone had calmed down. "We made them our allies, and I'm the one who did that."

"A slime did that? Please don't make such jokes." He brushed them off. All the Kijin remained still, but none were happy with Gabiru.

"Ranga," Rimuru called.

"Yes, master!" Ranga replied from the shadow. Rimuru and Shion's shadow grew larger and darker, waiting for Ranga to travel through. With a leap, he appeared at the front in his full size and growled at Gabiru.

"He says he wants to talk to you. Hear him out," Rimuru said.

"As you wish." Ranga used his skill [Menace] and all the lizardmen minus Gabiru cowered in fear.

"Wait, was he always that big?" Benimaru asked, unconcerned with the lizardmen once again.

"That's his true size," Rimuru told him and the rest of the group. "This size works better for intimidating people, you know?"

"My master has ordered me to hear what you have to say," Ranga growled out at Gabiru. Ranga leaned in closer. "So speak. I'm listening."

"Are you the leader of the Direwolves?" Gabiru asked. All the kijin in the back could only take guesses as to if he was brave or reckless. "Your beautiful fur, your keen eyes... you truly have a majestic presence. However... It is a bit disappointing to know that your master is a slime!"

"Huh?!" Rimuru cried in outrage while Ranga growled louder at Gabiru.

"It seems you've been deceived," Gabiru continued. "Very well. What this slime has done to you in unforgivable... so I shall defeat him for you!" Gabiru pointed at the slime behind Ranga as the other Kijin all looked at him as if asking if he really was as stupid as he was appearing to be. The rest of the lizardmen began shouting their praises again.

"A mere lizard dares to insult my master?!" Ranga growled out angrily. He let out a menacing aura, the aura surrounding him and glowing red, putting immense pressure on the lizardmen though none of them seemed to realize Ranga's anger as they continued praising Gabiru. Katsumi looked worriedly over to Rimuru, wondering if he should stop Ranga. After all, they were already at war with the orcs. Even if they didn't want to team up with the lizardmen, or this specific idiot called Gabiru, they couldn't afford to be at war with the Lizardmen at the same time.

Just in time, Gobta made his appearance, bounding over happily.

"Hey, what're you guys doing?" He asked cluelessly.

"Gobta!" Benimaru shouted in surprise.

"You're still alive?" Rimuru asked.

"Hey, that's kinda mean." Gobta waved his hand up and down. "Of course I'm alive!" Apparently, Gobta had gained Poison Resistance from Shion's food.

"Oh. I see. Even I don't have poison resistance. I'm impressed," Rimuru said to Gobta who smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Good timing," Ranga said as he jumped over the group and landed behind Gobta. With a gentle bite, he lifted Gobta by the back of his clothing and proceeded to set the goblin down in front of the group with a spear in his hand.

"What the heck is going on?" Gobta yelled as he stared at the Lizardman in front of him.

"Lizard, if you can defeat this one, I will consider your offer," Ranga said as he pushed Gobta forward.

"Why me?" Gobta asked, extremely confused.

"Fine by me!" Gabiru said proudly. "Having one of your subordinates fight saves you the shame of losing. Wouldn't you agree, slime?" Rimuru said nothing to Gabiru.

"Gobta, don't hold back! Get him!" Rimuru cheered on.

"Geez, why the heck am I doing this?" Gobta turned, pleading Rimuru to give him an explanation.

"If you win, I'll have Kurobe make a special weapon just for you!"

"Really? That motivates me a little!"

"And if you lose, you have to eat Shion's cooking!" Everyone's face darkened at the threat as Gobta got fired up.

"Anything but that!"

"For some reason, this conversation makes me very unhappy." Shion's grip on Rimuru tightened as she talked until Rimuru looked like he was about to be wrung like a towel.

"Are you ready?" Gabiru asked Gobta as the rest of the lizardmen cheered him on. Gobta didn't reply, but the aura he emit at the prospect of losing and having to eat Shion's cooking was enough to let them know he was ready.

"Then begin!" Ranga announced, howling to start the duel.

"We Lizardmen, descendants of the great Dragons, could never lose to a mere Hobgoblin..." Gabiru laughed, only to be shocked as Gobta threw the spear with surprising strength towards Gabiru. Gabiru charged towards Gobta, only to swipe at empty air. Gobta re-emerged from behind Gabiru and with a swift kick to the back of his head, Gabiru had fallen and Gobta was declared the winner. The lizardmen who were in the back had been shocked silent.

"That's that." Ranga said proudly. "The fight is over! The winner is Gobta!" The group of Kijins, Ranga and Rigurd all said their praises to Gobta. In joy, Ranga and Rigurd began tossing the smaller goblin up in the air, completely forgetting about the other lizardmen.

"Nice work, Gobta. I knew I saw promise in you." Ranga complimented.

"Well done showing them what a Hobgoblin can do!" Rigur said joyfully.

"I misjudged you. I'll pretend I didn't hear that rude comment you made about me earlier." Shion offered with a smile.

"Looks like he's gotten stronger since he fought us." Benimaru noted with a smile.

"I've never seen you in combat, but surely you're a worthy enemy," Katsumi complimented with a smile.

"It appears he has talent that would be worth nurturing." Hakurou commented.

"Good job, Gobta!" Rimuru joined in. "As promised, I'll have Kurobe make you a weapon." Gobta cheered in anticipation.

"As for all of you," Rimuru faced the lizardmen, "Gobta has won this battle! If you want us to help you fight the Orcs, we'll consider it, but we won't serve you. Take him and leave for today."

"W-We'll be back!" one of the lizardmen threatened as they lifted an unconscious Gabiru.

"Indeed, this is not over!" Another added.

"We-We'll remember this!" They cried, running away.

"Okay, then. I guess we'll have to plan where to go from here," Rimuru said as the lizardmen disappeared down the path. The rest of the kijin around him sighed, feeling their head ache at the encounter with the idiot the lizardmen called a leader. They probably would be better off not forming an alliance with the lizardmen if that was the best they could offer...

~~~

Later that night, Rimuru, the Kijin, Kaijin, Rigurd and the goblin lords were gathered in the central hall around the large table. Rimuru sat at the head with Shion to his right and Shuna to his left. Benimaru sat next to Shion, across from Rigurd. Katsumi was next to Benimaru with Kaijin across from him. Next to Katsumi was Souei, who sat across from Kurobe. Hakurou sat next to Souei across from Rigur. At the ends of the table sat the other goblin lords.

"I saw 200,000 Orcs," Souei announced. "The main army is moving north along the river. Based on the movements of this army and a detached force, I expect they will regroup in the marshlands east of here." He traced the path along a small map laid on the table.

"In the lizardmen's territory, you mean?" Rigurd asked. Souei nodded and sat back down.

"Two hundred thousand huh?" Rimuru frowned. "That's such a huge number it's hard to even imagine it. Just what is it the Orcs are after?" The table remained silent.

"Orcs are not very intelligent monsters," Kaijin said after some thought. "If there's something behind this invasion other than just instinct, we should suspect there's someone backing them."

"Someone backing them?" Kurobe asked.

"Like a Demon Lord, perhaps?" Rimuru asked, the weight of his words falling over the table. The table remained silent.

"If that Gelmud guy who came to your village is involved in this..." Rimuru stared at Benimaru who said nothing. "Well, there's no proof to base that on right now."

"I don't know if a Demon Lord is involved," Benimaru sighed. "But.. I think this makes it much more likely that an Orc Lord has appeared."

"The unique monster that only appears once every few centuries?" Rimuru asked.

"Yes," Benimaru responded. "I can't imagine an ordinary Orc leading an army of 200,000." Rimuru nodded, thinking deeply.

"I believe caution would be wiser than optimism in this case." One of the goblin lords who was sitting next to Rigur raised his hand, bringing the attention to him.

"I agree."

Suddenly, Souei flinched, causing everyone to look at him. Katsumi who was sitting right next to him glanced over worriedly at her cousin.

"What's wrong?" Rimuru asked.

"One of the body doubles I had scouting the area has made an encounter," Souei announced.

"An encounter?" Rimuru asked.

"They request an audience with you. How shall I respond?" Souei was holding his head to maintain his control over his double.

"Who is it?" Rimuru asked. "I already had my fill of Gabiru, so I'd rather not meet anyone weird."

"I don't believe this one is... weird..." Souei replied. "But it is a highly unusual encounter. It's... a Dryad." Everyone gasped.

"A Dryad!" Rimuru repeated.

"Hasn't it been several decades since the last time a Dryad showed itself?" Rigurd asked Kaijin, who didn't respond due to the shock.

"F-Fine! Bring her here!" Rimuru decided. Souei obeyed.

At the middle of the table, a glowing green light emerged and a plant began sprouting. Shion and Shuna immediately stood up in front of Rimuru, blocking him in case of an attack, while the rest of the Kijin quickly made their way to help protect Rimuru. Katsumi stood a bit in front of Shion with Benimaru in front of her. On the other side, Souei took a position slightly in front of Shuna. Even without their weapons, which were sitting at the side of the room, they were fairly well trained in hand-to-hand combat. The plant bloomed, revealing a Dryad at the center.

"Ruler of monsters, and all those who are loyal to him, forgive me for this unannounced visit," the dryad apologized. "I am Treyni, a Dryad. It is a pleasure to meet you."

"I'm Rimuru Tempest," Rimuru introduced. "So what brings you here?" None of the Kijin had yet to relax their stance in front of Rimuru.

"I have come to request a favor," Treyni said.

"A favor?"

"Rimuru Tempest, ruler of monsters, I would like you to defeat the Orc Lord."

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Hey everyone!

I hope y'all are safe and healthy! Thank y'all for waiting so long for this chapter. I tried my best to finish it as early as possible, but it still came out pretty late T^T

My new job should be less busy now, so I hope I have more time to write regularly and update for y'all. I missed my readers while I was busy with work T^T 

As always, let me know what y'all think of this chapter. Stay safe and healthy!
ThePurpleDragon