Rimuru And Iruma's Adventures In The Netherworld

by Mu1622

A bored Rimuru Tempest accompanies Diablo when he goes to meet with an old friend in the Netherworld. What will happen when he meets an out-of-place human boy who piques his interest? (Releases every other week on Saturdays!) (I also made a discord for discussion and questions. The link is in my profile's description.)

71. Walter Park

Walter Park

Iruma POV

I'm relaxing, trying to think about all the fun things I plan on doing during summer break when my thoughts are interrupted by an odd noise nearby. Curious, I get up from the couch to go look for the source.

*Pat…pat…pat…pat…*

It doesn't take very long for me to track down the source of the strange sound; a slime, hopping across the floor. It's tiny, looking much like Rimuru's slime form but miniaturized. It's so small that you could easily hold it in your hands, it being barely larger than a grapefruit.

Hang on, there aren't slimes in the Netherworld, right? What's one doing here then?

I try to think of where the slime possibly could have come from and I can only imagine one explanation:

This must be Rimuru!

"Rimuru, that's you, right? Did something happen?" I try to ask the slime, but I get no response whatsoever.

Realizing something must be wrong with her, I swiftly pick Rimuru and rush her over to Grandpa nearby.

"Grandpa, something's wrong with Rimuru! She's really tiny and not talking!" I shout, holding Rimuru out for him to see.

"Something happened to my dear granddaughter?" he asks with concern.

"We need to do something to help her!"

"Yes, Diablo might know, bring her to him!"

The two of us hurriedly enter Diablo's room, feeling like the situation doesn't call for knocking.

Showing the small slime in my hands, I explain the situation. "Diablo, something's happened to Rimuru! Do you have any idea what?"

"Please, old friend! Do something to help her!" Sullivan begs, with tears dotting the corners of his eyes.

"What are you two talking about? … Oh, I see," Diablo says, smirking and holding in a chuckle. "Enshrine him on a pillow, then walk in circles around him for an hour chanting 'all hail the slime', and he'll be back to normal in no time."

"Uh, okay, I'll do that!" I quickly say, and prepare things for the 'ritual'.

It sounds like an odd way of helping her, but I guess it must be the right thing to do since Diablo said so.

At first, Rimuru tries to hop off the pillow a few times but eventually stays put after I sit her back down each time.

And a few minutes later…

" "All hail the slime. All hail the slime. All hail the slime." "

Grandpa and I are walking around Rimuru, chanting the words that Diablo told us would cure her.

But without warning…

"Okay, okay, I've had my fun. I can't believe you two convinced yourselves that little guy was me, that was great!"

…The real Rimuru appears out of thin air, giggling and wiping her eyes.

"R-Rimuru! You're alright!" I say, relieved but also a little miffed since I got fooled into acting all silly.

The little slime goes hopping over to her and clings to her leg, rubbing up against it just like a cat would.

"I'm glad to see you're okay, but you really shouldn't let us worry for that long," Grandpa complains with a pout.

"Yeah, I was really worried that something horrible happened to you!" I add.

"Have a little more faith in me, I'll never need you to rescue me," Rimuru says as she picks up and cradles the slime.

Grandpa gives a sigh and leaves. "I'm very busy, so I'll see you two later now that this 'emergency' is over."

He doesn't really seem mad, more like tired out after the panic we both just went through.

"Seeya Grandpa!" I wave to him as he leaves and re-enters his office, likely working on stuff for the next term at Babyls. Grandpa is always so busy!

There is one question still lingering in my mind though, something that doesn't make sense…

"Uh, so where did the slime come from, Rimuru? It's not from around here, right?"

"Oh yeah, it snuck into my office while I was making a short visit to Tempest, so I figured I'd hang on to it for a bit. Summer is starting, and I'm used to having other slimes around at this time of year, so it just felt right to borrow one and make things feel a little more homely."

Is she feeling a little homesick?

"Have you been wanting to go back to Tempest?" I ask.

"Yeah, I do miss my friends there… We've got the whole summer ahead of us though, so we can make plenty of time for that."

'We'? She's really committed herself to protecting me, hasn't she?

"It sounds like you've already made up your mind about coming back here after the summer…"

"Oh… Did you want me to leave?" Rimuru asks, looking more than a little hurt.

She misunderstood me! I really need to explain this quick, she got really emotional last time she thought I was abandoning her…

"No, I mean… You've got a whole life you left behind in another world, but you dropped everything for my sake, even though you're a full-fledged Demon Lord! I'm just a bit confused because isn't that way more than I deserve?"

"Ah, I see what you mean… But you're only questioning it now?"

"Well, when Sullivan adopted me, I was completely out of my depth and everything seemed crazy; so the idea that a Demon Lord was coming with me to school to protect me was just another strange thing that was happening."

"Yeah, you did seem pretty overwhelmed back then…"

"I was! And that meant I didn't fully understand how significant what you did for me is… I mean, a Demon Lord is a way bigger deal than I thought, and you're the most important of them! Yet you're willing to live as a schoolgirl in another dimension just to protect some random kid…"

"Heh, I'm glad you don't take it for granted. But if you think I'm sacrificing something to be here with you, you're wrong."

"Don't you prefer being a Demon Lord?" I ask.

"Hmm… Look at it this way; In my world, I have my friends, my status, and everything I worked for, a true paradise. In this world, I'm just your sister, but there are countless new experiences to have, and my lack of status allows me to exist more naturally amongst others."

"So… you enjoy living two lives like this?"

"Pretty much. My usual life in Tempest will always be there for me, so I might as well keep being your sister for a while, as it really has been a lot of fun."

I give a wide smile, glad that Rimuru is truly happy to be here rather than just sticking around for my sake.

My phone has been occasionally buzzing during this conversation and the earlier slime incident, so I finally get around to checking it as it buzzes yet again.

"Oh, Rimuru, our class is asking if they can come over this evening to discuss our plans for Walter Park tomorrow."

"Yeah, I've been reading the texts in that group chat as well. I'd like to have some free time this evening though, so tell them to come over tomorrow morning, and that they can make plans while they ride with us."

"Alright, but won't Grandpa's carriage get kinda cramped with the whole class?" I ask as I send out the message Rimuru instructed.

"Don't worry, I have a plan for that. The reason I wanted to have some free time is that earlier, I picked up something fun from Tempest that I asked some people to make for you, and I'm excited to try it out!"

"For…me?"

I wonder what it could be?

Rimuru puts the little slime back down and it hops onto the couch, nestling in the corner, looking very comfy. Afterward, a confusing mess of parts appears in Rimuru's hands, mostly made of metal.

"Well, you've had two incidents now where not having wings has given you serious problems: Shortly after we first met you had to do a flight exam without being able to fly, and recently you've had Balam notice your lack of wings. Instead of waiting for a third incident to happen, what if you could just pop out a pair of wings when you need to?"

"So… Those are wings?!"

"Yep! Right after the incident with Balam, I commissioned Kaijin and Gabiru to develop a pair of mechanical demon wings, and they just completed it! This is still very much a prototype though; they need user data to improve the design, and I'll have Kurobe produce the final version."

That's a lot of names I don't know…

"Oh, they're all scientists and engineers from Tempest!" Rimuru quickly adds, noticing my confusion. "They've all been helping to develop the country before it was even founded, and they come up with all kinds of clever stuff. Recently they improved the system for removing excess magicules so that the magicules can be channeled elsewhere, which opens up all kinds of possibilities!"

"Sounds pretty important," I comment, knowing that 'magicules' are what my ring is powered by and that 'excess magicules' can be a big problem for someone like me.

"Vesta was part of that project too, I just hadn't mentioned him because he wasn't working on the wings… He's just as clever as the others I mentioned though! He figured out how to make healing potions with 99% purity when no one in the world could get past 98% with conventional methods, and that 1% improvement makes a huge difference because of the…"

Rimuru passionately talks for a while about the science of her country, completely nerding out, and although I feel totally out of my depth, we both have smiles on our faces.

I don't really understand any of this, but she seems to enjoy talking about it! It's nice to see this side of her... Although I really wanna hear more about the wings!

"That's all really cool!" I say, once Rimuru seems to be finished. "But how do the wings work?"

"Oh! Right, so you just put on this harness…"

It takes a few minutes to get me strapped in. Once the wings are on, Rimuru has me stand in front of a large mirror. I find that I can move the wings around a bit just by thinking about it, although they aren't very responsive.

"Hold these attunement handles," Rimuru instructs. "They'll make it much easier for the wings to pick up on your intentions."

I hold onto the handles, and think about spreading my wings…

"Woah!"

My figure in the mirror is framed by a pair of wings that seem just as majestic as Rimuru's. They're not quite black like hers, but instead a very dark blue, a color I quite like as it fits me well.

"So what do you think?" Rimuru inquires.

Excitedly, I respond, "Heh, it's strange seeing myself in this way, like I'm an actual demon… They're larger than I expected!"

"They're modeled after my own since demons find a large and majestic pair of wings to be pretty. You should show them off to Ameri, she'll love them!" Rimuru says, lightly punching my shoulder. "Maybe she could help you practice flying, too."

"Eh? Wouldn't that be a giveaway that I'm a human? I mean, I'm wearing a harness and holding these handles, I think she'd be able to work out that these wings aren't part of my body…"

"Wait, did Ameri not tell you that she- …Uh, never mind, I'm sure she has her reasons…"

"Huh?"

"Don't worry, don't worry! Just wait for the more realistic-looking version of the wings then. Wanna take these outside and give them a spin?"

"Sure!"

I'm a little nervous but very excited about the idea of being able to fly, it sounds incredible! I don't mind walking, but it's hard not to envy those who can swoop and soar through the air as they please.

Rimuru takes me outside and then spreads her wings.

"The first thing to understand about the wings of magical creatures, such as demons, is that they can manipulate air magically as well as physically. Say that a normal bat wanted to hover in one spot, what would it do?"

"Flap its wings lots?"

"Correct! But you don't see your classmates doing that. Instead, what they do is this…"

With a single gentle beat of her wings, Rimuru rises a few meters off of the ground and then hovers in the air.

"If my wings didn't use magic, that single beat of them wouldn't have even lifted me off the ground. Their magic amplified the force of that motion, and now the wings are generating air pressure underneath themselves in order to hover. Try to imagine pressure under your wings, and see what happens."

I concentrate on creating pressure under my wings, which is a little confusing as I can't feel them as part of my body, so it takes a few moments to get right. Soon enough though, I can feel my harness being tugged upwards, almost enough to lift me off the ground.

"I can feel them lifting! This is a little freaky, but so cool!"

"Good! Now just flap your wings a bit and imagine them pushing you off the ground!"

I start flapping my wings, and although my control over them is awkward, they're still providing enough force that my feet leave the ground and I start to rise above Rimuru.

"Great job Iruma! But keep yourself at my height, for now, you're taking your baby steps with flying. Reduce the pressure your wings are generating a tiny bit and you should start going down."

I lower myself to Rimuru's height, but she chuckles as I continue going down and accidentally land. I feel very light though and easily float back up to her level.

"Woah, I never thought flying would be so easy…"

"Well, you're just doing basic hovering, and those wings are very powerful. Normally, demons would need to build their strength before being able to hover without flapping like that. In your case, you get to skip all the exercise and have awesome flight power from the get-go."

The realization that I'm now unbound by gravity makes me giddy with excitement, and with a few hard beats of my wings I lift off into the sky, feeling the air rush past me.

"Haha, this is amazing! … Woah!"

I'm hit by a wave of vertigo as I look down and see the ground is now over a hundred meters below me after indulging my urge to go higher. Rimuru must have caught up to me in an instant, as she's quick to steady me with her hands on my shoulders from behind.

"You okay? I didn't expect you to take off like that. Is it an issue with the controls?"

"N-no, I just got excited and went way higher than I expected…"

"Your wings don't have any sensory feedback since you're just wearing them, so it can be a bit hard to tell exactly what you're doing. I know learning to fly is exciting, but don't go overboard as you did with the Strengthen Body skill, okay?"

"O-okay!"

I'm still panicking slightly from how high up we are, but Rimuru gives me a reassuring smile.

"If you're worried, we could do a trust fall."

"A trust fall?!"

"Fly straight up for a while, then close your eyes and count to five out loud as you let gravity take you. I promise you that I'll catch you the moment you reach five, alright?"

"Alright…"

Steeling myself for this insane idea, I fly until I'm almost level with the clouds, not daring to look down to see how high I am.

*gulp*

I close my eyes and tuck in my wings. Immediately I can feel myself plummeting, the air rushing past me and my organs shifting in my body from the freefall.

"One-two-three-four-five!"

Immediately, I'm gently caught and my fall stops. Opening my eyes, I see I'm being princess-carried by Rimuru.

"That was three seconds. But I'm glad you trusted me! … Uh, you're giving me that look again."

"I don't think it's fair to blame me in this case!" I protest, feeling embarrassed and quickly looking away from Rimuru.

"Yeah, you're right. Still awkward though, so..."

Rimuru lets go of me, but rather than plummeting again I instead float weightlessly in the air.

"That's a skill called Gravity Manipulation," she explains. "It's an alternative method of flight, or you can even use it at the same time as wings. It's pretty similar to Fractal, actually, so maybe you'd find that easier? Well, it's not something you need to use at the moment anyway. For now, just spread your wings and hover again."

As I do what Rimuru says, she gradually restores my gravity, and I manage to stay in place in the air.

"It's still a little scary looking down, but I think I can manage now…"

"Good! Wanna fly around for a while?"

"Sure!"

I spend the next half an hour learning how to maintain a steady cruise and do smooth turns, with Rimuru at my side the whole while. It's fun, but eventually, I have to call it quits.

"I'm feeling kinda beat now after all that flying, must be the 'magicule poisoning' thing…"

"Heh, don't worry, you'll adapt to it eventually. Wanna wrap things up then? I'd say this was a pretty successful test of the wings."

"Yeah, that'd be for the best. But, uh… which way is it home?" I ask, looking around and not recognizing any of the geography in view. We must've flown very far and I have no clue even what direction we came from since I lost any sense of direction while focusing on my practice.

"We're pretty far out, aren't we? It's about three kilometers that way," Rimuru says as she points at a distant forest. "Wanna see how fast you can get there?"

"Sure, one last flight for the day!"

Beating my wings hard and tightly gripping the attunement handles, I bolt off towards home, going faster than I've ever gone before.

Woah, these wings are powerful! I'm so fast!

I see the mansion down below, catching a glimpse of Opera looking up at me as I soar right past.

Whoops, I overshot it… Why can't I slow down? I'm going way too fast!

Panic starts to fill me as I realize that I've gone completely out of control.

My wings seem to be stuck going at full throttle, and I can only hope that Rimuru notices I'm in trouble soon because there's no way I can use the thought communication on my ring while I'm clinging to the attunement handles for dear life.

{{You overshot the mansion and look like you're panicking, did you lose control? … Alright, remember, trust fall!}}

She's seriously asking me to do that, at this speed?

Nervous about letting myself fall so close to the ground, I pitch upwards before I let go of the handles and stop trying to control my flight. My wings go limp and I tumble through the air in an arc, as I squeeze my eyes shut and wait for help.

The sensation is terrifying, even more so than when I did the first trust fall, but I tell myself that everything will be just fine and start counting.

"One… two… three... four… five!"

There's a lurch as I stop moving, and I open my eyes to find myself once again in Rimuru's arms. Relieved, I relax and go limp, exhausted from the experience.

"You're not giving me that look this time… now you just look dizzy."

"Huweeeh…"

"Ciel thinks it might have been a feedback loop, where thinking about how fast you were going told the wings to go fast... That'll have to be sorted out in the next version."

Between the dizziness, vertigo, and magicule overdose, I'm doing my best not to throw up; thankfully Rimuru just teleports me straight back to solid ground in front of the mansion.

Rimuru POV

Poor kid, he looks like a mess…

I let Iruma lean on me as we walk back to the mansion, and give him some words of encouragement.

"You did a really good job with flying out there, unfortunately testing out prototypes is sometimes gonna be like that…"

I give him some healing to take away the aching that he's no doubt feeling from the heavy magic usage, but I can't do much about queasiness if it's not from sickness or injury.

"Young Master, are you alright?" Opera asks as we reach the door.

"He's a little shaken up after flight training. If you could take him inside and get him something to settle his stomach, that would be great."

As Iruma is being escorted in by Opera, he turns around and says "Thanks for the lesson! I'll do better next time!" still smiling despite likely feeling horrible at the moment.

"Alright, I hope to see it!" I cheerfully reply, glad that he seemed to have fun.

I sit on the mansion steps, looking out as the low sun dyes everything a shade of red.

I'm glad Iruma doesn't hold it against me that he had a rough time, even though he quite rightly could. If I gave him weaker wings or added a way to control their power, he probably would have had much more fun.

The door opens, and Sullivan sits next to me, apparently having found out what's going on.

"I heard you gave Iruma flying lessons."

"Not having wings or being able to fly has simply been a source of too much trouble. He needs this, it's the biggest thing preventing him from blending in."

"I agree completely. But for demons, learning to fly is supposed to be a special moment of bonding between the parent and child," he says in a wistful tone.

He's just jealous!

"Oi, you think I'm gonna spend all my time looking out for him but hand over any special moments with him to you?"

"It isn't something I can fairly ask, I suppose. It's just that when he's all grown up, will I end up feeling like our time together slipped through my fingers?" he questions in a surprisingly somber tone.

I can see his point, and I feel a little bad for snapping at him now. He's very busy due to his importance within the Netherworld, so he doesn't spend nearly as much time with Iruma as myself and Opera do.

"… Listen, I understand your position, being the guy at the top that everything comes to. So let me tell you that the only way you're going to have time with Iruma is if you seize that time yourself. Everyone who works under you seems very competent, so do you think it'd be a disaster if you declared that you want to spend more time with your grandson while he's still a kid?"

"That would be possible, it seems irresponsible of me as a principal though…"

"Take some time to get things in order then, you should never ignore your needs as a person. Even Ciel needs to be indulged from time to time."

A few minutes of silence pass as Sullivan contemplates his situation. I can't help but spend that time fixating on the binary moons overhead, faint in the reddening sky; I've seen them plenty of times before, but I still have no idea what's up there. This world has some pretty powerful demons, have they been there before? Do the moons possibly have life? I could simply ask Ciel as she's been very studious in this world, but it's more fun to indulge the sense of wanderlust.

"Talk to Iruma if you want to be a part of his summer plans," I say as I stand up and spread my wings. "For now, I'm going to make a quick trip; I'll be back in time for dinner."

"See you later, Rimuru!" Sullivan calls out for me as I bolt upwards into space.

Iruma POV

It's been a few minutes, so I've calmed down now after flight training, and Opera is still with me, doing his utmost to ensure my comfort. The quiet is broken by Grandpa bursting in, full of excitement and joy.

"Irumaaa~! Your grandpa has decided to spend the summer with you!"

"Sir, you can't just ignore your work…" Opera protests.

"Work this, work that; I can trust the Babyls staff to make decisions on their own for a while, but I don't get a redo of the time I should spend doting on my dear sweet grandson!"

Grandpa picks me up and holds me close, and I giggle a bit as he rubs his cheek against mine; he's so goofy, but he really loves me!

"What brought this on, sir?" Opera asks.

"I really felt that I should spend more time with Iruma, but work keeps me too busy… Rimuru told me what I really needed to hear from someone else, that it's okay to take time off so I can focus on being a grandfather."

"Are you sure taking her advice is wise?" Opera questions, raising an eyebrow at him, but Grandpa doesn't seem to care much.

"Oh, you still don't trust my darling granddaughter, Opera?" he asks, almost sounding offended by Opera's fear.

"No Sir, that's not-" Opera starts to make excuses but is stopped.

"Opera", I interject, "I know you two got off on the wrong foot because of something she did, but hasn't Rimuru shown you by now that she means well?"

"I suppose that is true…perhaps I should let my guard down, if even just a little."

I notice how gloomy the mood just got so I decided to do something about it.

"I'm glad I can spend summer with you, Grandpa!" I say cheerfully, to which he makes a noise of delight and squeezes me tighter. "You too, Opera!"

Opera gives a defeated sigh, seeing that there's no way he can change our minds now. "We'll just have to see what happens…" he mutters, shaking his head at us.

"So, what plans did you have for summer?" Grandpa asks.

"Everyone in class is going to Walter Park tomorrow, and Rimuru sounds like she's really excited about it! Then she wants to spend some time in Tempest, which I'm sure will be interesting."

"Hmm, Walter Park? We should probably arrange some security if the whole class is going…"

"Is it that dangerous?"

From what my classmates said, it just sounded like an amusement park, so why would I need extra security?

"You'd be surprised where you can find evil lurking within the Netherworld," Grandpa says with unexpected seriousness, setting me back down on the floor.

"Woah… But we'll have Rimuru with us, so won't we be fine?" I ask. That's part of the reason Rimuru is here, right? To protect me? She's super powerful too so I don't think that there's much that could be too much for her to handle.

"It seems unfair to ask her to watch over the whole class when she sounds like she wants to have fun too. So I'd want two other adults to go with her. Opera?"

"Of course, sir."

"Who else? I'll have to think about it…"

"Won't you be going too, Grandpa?" I ask.

"I'm afraid not, I still have a few things to sort out at Babyls before I can go on vacation. I should have free time after that, though."

"Oh well… I'll be sure to bring back lots of pictures! Eh? Speaking of which, Rimuru just sent me a picture and it looks like… Is she on one of the moons?!"

Rimuru POV

"Did you manage to send it?" I ask Ciel, who's holding my phone and taking photographs of me.

"Yes, I was able to amplify the signal of this phone to reach planetside."

"Cool! Now send them a shot of me planting this flag!"

The vacuum of space isn't an obstacle to our speech, because being a natural at interlacing speech with magic to make up for physical shortcomings is a necessity for the most powerful beings. Otherwise, it'd only be possible to communicate telepathically during intense fights; the Doppler effect, deafening background noise, abnormal atmospheric conditions, and differences in perception speed; all of those would make normal communication a nightmare.

Pretending to be an astronaut, I stick a Tempest flag into the rocky ground of the Netherworld's larger moon, and Ciel snaps a picture of me with my phone.

"You're not the first person to visit these moons, a small number of demons have previously made the journey," Ciel points out.

"That's not too surprising, there are some pretty powerful demons in this world."

Looking around at the moonscape I find myself on, I try to think of what I should do while up here since I went to the trouble of making the trip. While lost in thought, Ciel suddenly speaks up again.

"Master, if I may, the last time you were on a moon you did something that I thought was very beautiful."

"You mean the meteor showers?"

"Yes, I was wondering if you might do the same here," she suggests.

"Hmm… Sure!" I respond, feeling like a lightbulb just went off in my head.

A couple of years back, I had swept up thousands of tonnes of dust and debris from the Cardinal World's moon, propelling it into a trajectory to rain down on the planet below. A year's worth of meteorites fell onto the planet over the course of just a few days, such that there were too many shooting stars to count.

It was regarded as a miracle of nature, as no one thought such a thing might be artificially induced. I never took credit for it, I was satisfied just with seeing everyone's delight as they watched the night sky.

Ciel is very cautious, so if she suggested it, there's no way it'd have any significant negative consequences if I did it again here.

"Alright, here goes!"

I conjure up a powerful storm (once again, somehow unimpeded by the vacuum because of magic), violently blowing a huge amount of material off of the surface of the moon, and scattering it on a trajectory that will eventually intercept the planet.

"You blew the flag away as well," Ciel points out.

"Whoops. That was a magically generated one too, so it's mythical grade… and I lost it. Ah well, there's no way that will cause weird things to happen later."

"Isn't this what you call 'setting a flag' and instruct your subordinates not to do?"

"I suppose it quite literally is. Anyway, let's head back, dinner's probably waiting."

**The next day**

Rimuru POV

Early in the morning, before anyone arrives, I summon something massive out of Imaginary Space: A wagon with five large, fancy-looking carriages linked together like a train.

It's my own custom train wagon! A way for a large group like us to travel in luxury.

What is a train wagon, you may ask?

Well…

The train wagon is a form of medium-capacity transport, used when traffic along a route is too low for costly infrastructure such as a railway or teleportation circle, but some form of safe and fast transport is still desired.

Building and operating a rail a hundred kilometers long to connect a village of several hundred people to the nearest town is nonsense, of course. But it's a huge ordeal to spend days following a lengthy and little-used trail through the dangerous wilderness, so for those living in remote areas, the opportunity to take a train wagon into a town is hugely beneficial even if it's only once a month.

The reason that trains of wagons are used instead of many singular wagons is due to the availability of magical beasts that are vastly stronger than horses. It's a waste of their strength to have one of them pull a single wagon, so several will be linked in a chain such that a single magical beast can transport dozens of people.

There's a variety of magical beasts in Jura Forest suitable for pulling train wagons, but undoubtedly the best at running these routes are Tempest Wolves.

At full size, a Tempest Wolf is nearly as large as a horse and has incomparable strength, speed, and stamina. Sure, they aren't the most powerful variety of evolved direwolves, but Star Wolves would be overkill and are rare outside of Ranga's pack.

The more restless amongst the Tempest Wolves willingly join the transportation business, covering potentially hundreds of kilometers of trail a day and earning high praises from remote communities. Due to their intelligence, they're able to operate entirely solo, meaning that assigning a driver or guard is pointless.

Which was an amusing surprise for me to find out since it meant that some wolves went so far as to start their own business.

This method of transport is almost exclusive to Tempest and the Star Dragon Federation (Milim's territory), as both are vast but sparsely populated territories with countless isolated communities, and it's simply much harder to find appropriate steeds outside of these countries.

Of course, this train wagon won't be pulled by direwolves…

Sullivan's horses have taken notice of what I just conjured up, and they balk at the sight, thinking they'll have to pull this behemoth of a load. Which they will!

"You two are giant magical beasts. You can totally handle this, you're just too used to pulling that dainty carriage of Sullivan's."

"Neigh?"

"No, you can't have Ranga help you! It's a two-hour trip, what if I want a readily accessible source of fluff and cuteness during that time? Plus, he might get carried away and go airborne or something."

"Neigh…"

"Fine, I'll groom your coats when we get back."

"Neigh."

"Good, we have a deal."

I took care of all of this before anyone else was awake, wanting to get it all set before anyone can see. It'll be a nice surprise for Iruma, I think.

Knowing that it's about time he gets up, I head back inside leaving the train wagon and Sullivan's horses behind.

Iruma POV

I wake up to the sound of my alarm clock squawking at me and slap my hand down to snooze it without opening my eyes, knowing right where it is on my bedside table. I let my left arm fall over the side of my bed afterward, not caring where it ends up.

"Ugh… too early…" I groan, barely awake. The sun has barely risen, leaving my room still fairly dim, that's how early it is right now.

I force my eyes open a little and see something moving, although my vision is still foggy from sleep. I think I saw something round roll into my room, but I couldn't tell if I actually did.

What…is that…? It looked kinda shiny… and blue-ish…

I groggily try to grasp what I saw, but my eyes lost track of whatever that was almost immediately. Not thinking much of it, I close my eyes again and my mind begins to drift off back into sleep.

"Don't fall back asleep!" a voice comes from right next to me.

My eyes shoot open immediately, just in time to see Rimuru pop out of nowhere, mere inches from me and the side of my bed I'm hanging over.

"Aaaaah!" I cry out, lunging backward. "Wh-where did you come from Rimuru?! I didn't even see you walk in!"

"I came in through the door, you know, like a normal person. I guess I didn't exactly walk in…but that doesn't matter."

"Huh?"

"Don't think about it and just get up. I'm sure our classmates will be here soon."

"Wait…that was you! You rolled into my room as a slime, didn't you?"

"Hahaha, guilty as charged!"

"I thought I was just dreaming at first…"

"Anyway, you want some coffee? It ought to wake you up somewhat," Rimuru asks. I see now that she's holding a cup of it, steam coming from the milky froth on top.

Coffee is the stuff adults drink when they want to be energized, right? I guess I could try it…

"Sure, thanks," I respond as I take the cup from her.

I cautiously take a sip, not sure how it will taste. I've never gotten the chance to try something like this before.

It's bitter, but also sweet and creamy. Cream and sugar are added to coffee, right? There must be some in this cup then because I don't think it's supposed to be sweet by itself.

"Good, huh?" Rimuru asks, taking a sip out of her own cup of the stuff.

I nod, thinking that it tastes pretty good.

I sit on the edge of my bed with Rimuru, sipping coffee for the next few minutes. As I drink my way through it, I start to feel more awake and energized.

Wow! I guess when people say coffee gives them energy, they really mean it!

Once I'm done, I enthusiastically hop off the bed.

"Here, I'll take your cup. Didn't you say you still had to pack or something?" Rimuru says, holding out her hand to me.

"Yeah, Grandpa wants to pack stuff just to make sure I have everything I need. I think he's a little nervous about me going somewhere without him. I know I went around Tempest while he did other stuff, but he was still nearby and I had someone that could be considered a bodyguard with me."

"I don't know much about this Walter Park place, but I'm guessing that it's fairly safe. I mean, as safe as an amusement park can be, at least. Plus, you'll have me around so no worries."

"I'm not worried. It's just Grandpa being overprotective, as usual."

"Okay, well, go have fun packing then."

"I will!"

"Heh, you're definitely more energetic now, aren't you?" Rimuru asks with an amused chuckle.

"That's what coffee's supposed to do!"

Rimuru just laughs some more as I leave the room to go help pack.

"Good morning, Grandson! You are awful peppy today, are you excited for your trip?"

"Yes! I can't wait! Let's get packing before my friends get here!"

Brimming with energy, I start the packing process. It seems a bit excessive, but if Grandpa says I need it, I guess I need it. It's not like I've gone to an amusement park before so I have no clue what I should and shouldn't bring.

Man, I feel great! Maybe I should drink coffee more often!

Rimuru POV

"Hehe…the placebo effect is something else…"

Watching Iruma run off, hyper and energetic, I can't help but chuckle. I did give the boy coffee, but it was decaf. I don't think he needs the real stuff to be full of energy, after all. Yeah, I know, that was a little underhanded, but it worked even better than I expected!

Unlike Iruma, I sit and slowly enjoy my real cup of coffee (not that the stimulant effect does anything for me; I don't need it since I don't get tired or sleepy). He must've liked it a lot since he practically chugged it within a few short minutes. It was laced with cream and sugar, of course, since that's the way I like it, so I'm guessing that made it more palatable for a kid like him.

Don't you dare say my taste in beverages is childish, I've already heard that nonsense from Hinata! She has nowhere to talk though, in my opinion, considering the way she likes her sushi without wasabi.

Well, whatever. Back to talking about preparations for this trip.

I'm in no rush since I already have everything I could possibly need stored away in my Imaginary Space. I'm not sure what Sullivan plans on having Iruma take with him, but I'm guessing anything he does will end up being redundant when considering what I have with me.

Now I need to prepare myself, and by that, I mean dressing for the occasion after finishing my coffee. It's starting to get hotter outside, and although heat doesn't affect me, if I don't dress appropriately people will look at me like I'm a weirdo.

So, I put on a pair of shorts and a tank top; pretty typical summer-wear, I think. I also bothered to pull my hair back too, into a pair of braids specifically. And by 'I', I mean Ciel, but instead of taking charge of my body, she did it with her current 'Amane body'.

(Author's Note: if you didn't notice, this is Rimuru's summer outfit from Slime Diaries/Tensura Nikki.)

"Having fun back there?" I ask as I let her expertly braid my hair from behind.

"Of course."

She seems to be having more fun with this than usual, maybe because she's physically here with me this time? Whatever the reason is, it's good to see.

"Sorry, you can't come along this time, although, technically you will be."

"Yes, I will always be with you, Master. This body is simply a vessel, nothing more."

"Yup, I know."

After spending a little time with Ciel, I head downstairs since it won't be long before the other Misfits will be here at the mansion, riding along with Iruma, Diablo, Opera, and myself.

"What's all that?" I ask out loud, flabbergasted by what I see.

A ginormous backpack that's so large that nobody could ever carry it. Well, I suppose I could, but that's beside the point since Iruma surely can't.

"It's what I'm bringing with me to Walter Park!" Iruma responds cheerfully.

I do a double-take between the boy and the bag, wondering how the hell he thinks that's a normal amount of stuff to take on a trip. I mean, it looks like he packed his entire bedroom's contents into that thing. I know I have a lot more with me, but I don't have to carry it on my back, which makes it acceptable.

"Isn't that a bit…much? Like, can you even pick that thing up?" I ask, already knowing the answer.

"Hehehe…I guess I might have packed too much."

You think? Sheesh…

"Just grab some essentials, like a few snacks and a water bottle. We don't need all that other nonsense, okay? Don't forget your phone either so you can contact other people that aren't me."

Ciel, who followed me downstairs, quietly walks up to me and whispers in my ear.

"Master, could you not consume the boy's belongings for him so he does not have to compromise on what he takes with him?"

"You know I could, but I don't really see the point."

"Yes, there are many unnecessary items contained in that bag. It would be a waste to bring them along without reason."

Iruma, looking a little embarrassed, rifles through the gigantic bag and takes what I told him to out of it, along with a few extras that I chose not to complain about. Afterward, he has a much smaller, normal-sized backpack on his back, packed and ready to go.

Now ready, we all head outside and stand near the ready and prepared wagon train I put together earlier and it's not long before all of our guests show up.

"Whoa, this thing is pretty fancy. I bet it cost a lot." Jazz comments while staring at the wagon.

"It looks lovely, doesn't it!" Elizabetta adds.

The only person here that isn't full of enthusiasm seems to be Sullivan, who's crying since he can't come with us.

"Are you certain you'll be alright without me?" he asks Iruma between sobs. I guess from an outsider's perspective, he could be seen as worrying about us both, but I know that he's much more concerned about Iruma.

"Of course, Grandpa!"

"Don't worry, Sir, I will be present and make sure safety is of the highest priority," Opera says with a bow.

Yeah, he's coming with us, and so is Diablo. Other than that it's just me, Iruma, and our other classmates. Sullivan wanted some extra security to keep Iruma safe for whatever reason. He even thought of getting some of the teachers from Babyls to come along too, but that would've been overkill, so he just stuck with us three.

Me and me alone would be plenty, I think, but having some of that responsibility given to others doesn't bother me at all. It leaves me more time to enjoy myself, at least.

"Psst…Iruma, is that your mom or somethin'?" Jazz asks Iruma quietly, gesturing toward Amane.

Iruma nods after looking where Jazz was.

"Wooow…you were right when you said Rimuru looked like her, I mean, their faces are almost identical!" Lead adds, also staring at Ciel now.

"Although, outside of the hair and eye color, there is one difference that I see between them…" Jazz says, but seems to stop himself mid-point.

"Yes, their mother is quite a bit more womanly, isn't she!" Camui says what Jazz had enough sense not to.

Yup, he's talking about bust size.

I, of course, am flatter than flat, which is perfectly normal since I'm not actually female, but none of these guys know that. I'm not really offended by them pointing this out, but I know full well that any real girl would be.

"That's rude…" Keroli scolds, quiet but loud enough that everyone still heard her.

See? I even have a girl getting upset on my behalf!

"Yes, commenting on a woman's figure is not something you should be doing!" Elizabetta states, backing her up.

Should I pretend to be offended? You know, to keep up the act and all. I guess a simple glare would do the trick.

But, before I could do anything, Ciel took action herself.

"I agree, that was not something you should have said, young man." She coldly confronts Camui. Her approach causes everyone else to back away from the boy, but he seems frozen with terror himself.

Camui just sputters in response, unable to even speak under the angry gaze of Ciel, which even terrifies me.

"And I thought Rimuru could be scary…I guess that's where she gets it from…" Jazz mutters under his breath.

Third Person POV

Soon enough, everyone's on board, and the wagon makes headway.

For the first half of the trip, everyone is checking out all the places they want to go, and making plans for how they'll explore the park.

But the planning doesn't take too long, and soon enough everyone has scattered across the carriages, biding their time and eagerly awaiting their arrival.

Lead is engrossed in an intense gaming session, and sitting next to him is Jazz, who is flipping through something interesting that he found.

"Man, Sullivan has taken this carriage places, check out this magazine I found between the seats…" Jazz says, showing it to Lead.

"… It looks like a travel guide, but I can't read the script at all. Check out those exotic babes though… Just imagine their soft and feathery wings wrapped around you!" Lead exclaims excitedly.

"I wish Allocer was here, I bet he'd know what place this is."

"Speaking of which, where is he?"

"Ah, he's attending a conference with Professor Furcas. Those two seemed to really hit it off when we were collecting forms for Royal One."

In the next carriage, Ranga is enjoying a thorough pampering from several people at once, few things draw people in like a big fluffy wolf to pat all over. But as the wagon enters Bougainvillea Forest, his ears perk up from the noises of wildlife, and he sits up to look out the window.

Bougainvillea Forest is notable for having beautiful colors, with one of the most common species of tree there having a rich violet shade to its leaves.

It's still an extremely dangerous place, but that's a given for wilderness anywhere in the Netherworld.

"I think he wants to jump out the window!" Clara says, opening it for Ranga.

"Wait, that's not a good idea at this speed," Azz tries to object.

But Ranga just gives Clara a nod and leaps outside, sticking the landing without trouble and bounding off into the woods.

"Well, there he goes…" Azz mutters.

"I wanted to pet him more!" Elizabetta complains.

Elsewhere, Rimuru is deeply focused on the papers in his hand, pondering on policies and ideals, trying to solve problems with no right answers. Guiding the development of a federation, and to some extent, an entire world is challenging work even with his government pulling its weight.

He doesn't notice that Iruma has fallen asleep next to him, until the boy slumps onto his shoulder, nestling into his long hair.

It's a surprise, but Rimuru allows his ward to rest against him, the adorableness of it bringing a smile to his face. He did give Iruma lots of exercise yesterday and made him get up early today, he can't blame the kid for wanting to be fully recharged before a day full of fun.

Rimuru POV

Seeing and hearing the hustle and bustle of the park outside, I jiggle Iruma a bit.

"Hey, we're here."

He stirs awake, sitting up and opening his eyes, his brain catching up to reality.

"… Ah! I'm sorry I fell asleep on your shoulder!" he suddenly exclaims.

"It's fine, you looked too comfortable for me to bother you."

I did get drooled on a bit, but with barely a thought the mark vanishes.

Our group pours out of the wagon, the Misfit Class getting out and stretching their legs, Opera and Diablo following in tow as bodyguards.

While looking through the crowds waiting outside the park gate, I notice a familiar head of red hair.

"Oh? What a coincidence, Ameri so happens to be here as well," I say as I nudge Iruma. "You should say hi!"

"Um, well… I actually invited her myself…" Iruma reluctantly admits.

"Ara ara, what's this? You invited her to join us but kept it a secret? How scandalous…"

"You'd have teased me if I told you!"

"I'm teasing you now, so clearly that didn't work out for you," I say with a devilish smile.

Iruma is looking at the ground with embarrassment, so I lay off him a bit. I don't want to be a bully, after all.

"Alright, I've had my fun, no need to feel like you've been caught with your pants down," I say as I pat Iruma on the head. "It'd be unfair of me to make assumptions whenever you spend time with girls."

Ameri has noticed the arrival of our group now, and she looks grumpy, so I sidle away as she approaches Iruma.

"Ameri! I'm glad you could make it!" Iruma says cheerfully.

"Iruma, who are all these people?"

"Well, they're my classmates…" he explains, looking a bit puzzled at why Ameri is even asking that question.

"I know that! But why are they here? You said it'd just be the two of us!" Ameri complains with a pout.

"Eh? I never said that it'd be just us two!"

Ameri quickly checks her phone to see exactly what Iruma had said, and looks crestfallen as she, assumedly, sees that Iruma really never said it'd be just the two of them.

She's got it bad if she pretty much imagined that Iruma asked her on a date. I almost feel sorry for her, Iruma is kinda clueless about this stuff.

"Walter Park is about to open!" screeches a loudspeaker in a cartoonish voice. The crowds of people waiting all have their attention turned towards the enormous park gates, which slowly and dramatically open.

"Good morning everyone!" the screeching continues. "Gleeful! Delightful! The fool who has the most fun is on top! The one who doesn't have fun is the biggest fool! Think of nothing but playing! This is the city of fantasy!"

Rows of entertainers in all kinds of unique getups greet us at the entrance. " "Walter Park!" "

"Welcome to the highest form of entertainment you can find!" one of them says.

"Have a wonderful day!" says another.

Countless attractions and decorations can be seen behind them, almost as if a whole city had been built just to play around in.

The PA system's a tad bossy, but this is the kind of professional grand-scale entertainment you just can't get in the Cardinal World yet!

Almost immediately, half of our group tries to scatter and explore the park at their own leisure, the allure too much to resist for a moment longer.

"Hold it!" Opera calls out, stopping everyone in their tracks. "Lord Sullivan doesn't want you all running around unattended, so each of you will be in a group with either me or Diablo."

"What? Can't we just all go where we want?" Lead complains.

"No."

"We'll be in teams! We should have a competition!" Clara shouts.

"A competition?" Iruma asks.

"The team who has the most fun wins!"

"Oh! How about the winning team gets to ask a favor from the losing teams?" Lead suggests.

"I agree that having stakes would make this excursion more interesting, but I cannot abide by the idea that the other team could exploit Rimuru should this park possesses inadequate entertainment," Diablo objects.

Personally, I can't think of anything I'd want from the other team, but it does sound like a fun idea.

"It's fine Diablo, I'm willing to take that risk," I casually say.

"Alright, let's draw lots for teams," Opera says while holding a cup of sticks. "If your stick has an O, you'll be on my team, and if your stick has a D you'll be on Diablo's team."

"Lots? I should be on Iruma's team automatically if he invited me," Ameri declares.

"No way, you gotta draw lots like the rest of us! It's all part of the fun, you know!" Lead cheerfully replies.

Poor Ameri, I ought to lend her a hand here.

"How about we split into three teams?" I suggest to my class.

"Shouldn't we split into two teams? Since there are two adults…" Keroli points out.

"Such large teams would make things troublesome. Since two of us are rank 6, we could simply both be on one team and then that team would hardly need the protection of an adult. That way, we can get three teams."

Opera and Diablo nod in agreement, though Diablo then looks shocked.

He must have just realized that there's no way we'll be on the same team now. Sorry, man! You'll live…

"… Very well," Ameri says as she joins me. She looks a little annoyed that I manipulated the situation to put her on the same team as me, but I have a plan in mind.

"Also, I get to play the sibling card and have Iruma on my team automatically," I add.

"Ah, sure, that makes sense!" Iruma says, joining up with myself and Ameri.

Ameri has an expression of surprise as she realizes that I put her and Iruma on the same team without even drawing lots. I look up at her with a cheeky grin, and she replies with a smile that looks both appreciative and reluctant at the same time, somehow. She's the type that struggles to accept favors, so I'm not surprised.

"Now we can draw lots," I say, having achieved my duties as wingman.

…

Once the lots are drawn, and some truly childish team names invented, the teams are as follows:

The Strongest Team: Rimuru, Ameri, Iruma, Azz, Sabnock

The Coolest Team: Diablo, Camui, Lead, Picero, Goemon

The Fun Gang: Opera, Jazz, Keroli, Clara, Elizabetta

"Wait a sec…why am I…uh…never mind…" Jazz starts to object before realizing that he probably shouldn't. He ended up on a team of all girls and doesn't look too thrilled about it, but saying anything out loud will just anger his teammates.

"We're going to have so much fun together!" Elizabetta exclaims, approaching Jazz with Clara and Keroli.

"Yeah…I think we can win this!" Keroli adds with a surprising amount of enthusiasm.

"Fun Gang, yeah, yeah!" Clara cheers, bouncing up and down in place.

"Sure, let's have a blast…" Jazz mutters with a forced smile, not looking very sure about this situation, but still accepting it.

"Yes, I will ensure you four have plenty of fun today," Opera says as he joins the group he's supervising for this trip.

"Wait, what's up with this guy?" Lead asks me, pointing a thumb at Diablo.

"He's my butler," I reply simply. Even though officially he's my '(second) secretary', he dresses like and acts as a butler to me in pretty much every sense of the word.

"I thought Opera was your butler…"

"No, he's Iruma's."

"You both have your own butler? I know you're Sullivan's grandchildren but just how upper-class can you get?!" Lead asks, both shocked and jealous.

"Hey, at least our butlers don't have butlers," I joke.

"That really would be too much…"

Lead looks hesitant to approach Diablo, probably scared of the man. I get it, Diablo can be freaky, but he's under orders to behave himself, so I don't foresee any problems with putting him in charge of a few teens for a day. I do make sure to send him another order though to not get into any shenanigans though, just to play it safe.

After arranging our groups, combined with an additional few minutes of waiting, the gates to Walter Park finally open and a message blares over an intercom announcing this to the crowd gathered outside of them.

The inside is flashy, colorful, and extravagant, with many garishly-clothed employees greeting us as we step through the gates.

Everyone charged in and I decided to join them, letting myself get caught up in the excitement. It's a bit childish of me, but whatever.

"FYI, there will also be dem-dol concerts today and tomorrow!" one employee sunnily announces, holding up a flier. Guess who's on it…Kuromu, of course.

Isn't Keroli hanging with our classmates today? How is she supposed to perform?

My best guess is that she plans to sneak off later or something, otherwise, she'd miss her performance, and I know exactly how much she wouldn't want to do that.

"Kuromu is gonna be here?! That's so awesome!" Lead shouts pumped to see her, I guess. He does seem to be a fan of hers.

"Well, I'm wondering if that mysterious duo is going to show up and join her this time." Jazz ponders.

This makes Keroli puff her cheeks out in annoyance.

"Oh, I wouldn't count on it if I were you!" Iruma quickly interjects, rushing right to the side of Keroli.

Might as well tease him a bit.

"What, we won't? I still have those outfits with me." I whisper to Iruma, coming up behind him and Keroli and sticking my face right between their heads, making it so only those two can hear me.

Iruma stiffens with shock and horror at the idea and Keroli gives me the glare of all glares.

"I'm just messing with you both! No need to freak out!" I quickly reassure them.

Keroli gives me a high-pitched "Hmph." before averting her eyes and crossing her arms while Iruma sighs with relief.

Soon after, our groups split, going with their respective chaperones. We all grab maps and pamphlets from a nearby employee and start planning out our day.

"So where would you want to head first, Iruma?" Ameri asks, nervously touching her two index fingers together as she waits for his answer.

"I dunno…everything looks like so much fun!" he replies, his face buried in the pamphlet in his hands.

"Why don't we just walk around a bit and see if anything catches our interest then."

"I will go wherever Master Iruma wants to go." Azz agrees with the plan in his own special way.

Ameri nods, saying the same without admitting it out loud.

"Yes, let us go!" Sabnock shouts enthusiastically.

Iruma POV

"Oh, look at that!" I say, pointing at a building that grabbed my attention.

"'The Hall of Confusion'...I believe it is an attraction full of mirrors that you're supposed to work your way through. A sort of maze that's especially hard to navigate." Ameri explains.

"So a hall of mirrors then? Sounds like fun to me. Wanna try it out, guys?" Rimuru asks, also looking like she wants to try it out. The wide smile on her face makes that very clear.

"Yes, I will not pale in the face of such a challenge!" Sabnock boldly declares.

"I suppose we could give it a go. Is that what you want, Master Iruma?" Azz asks, not sounding too interested himself, but as usual, he's prioritizing my wishes.

"Yeah! I've heard about these before and it sounds like a blast to me!" I reply excitedly.

We wander inside, filing in one by one since it's fairly narrow, and it seems to be exactly what I expected; a bunch of mirrors arranged into a confusing maze.

All of us are duplicated by numerous reflections and reflections of reflections of our group, all surrounding us, making it hard to tell which is real.

*bonk*

I stumble back after faceplanting into one of the mirrors and end up bumping into Ameri, who came in right after me.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Ameri! I didn't mean to!" I quickly apologize since I almost knocked her down.

It's almost like that first time we met, except this time I didn't manage to make us both fall to the floor.

"It is fine, Iruma. Are you alright?" Ameri asks, looking a little flustered and confused after I collided with her.

"Yeah, I just bumped into one of the mirrors like a goofball, that's all," I reply with an awkward chuckle, feeling embarrassed.

"This definitely lives up to the term 'Hall of Confusion', I have to say." Azz comments, looking around us with a puzzled expression.

"Yeah, I think there's even a spell of some sort used on this place meant to confuse your sense of direction even more," Rimuru adds matter-of-factly, not seeming very disoriented like the rest of us are.

"There is? I suppose you would notice something like that, wouldn't you Rimuru." Azz responds with a small smile, not seeming surprised at all.

"Yes, you are quite talented at recognizing magic, my rival!" Sabnock booms.

Rimuru just laughs off his compliment and keeps walking through the maze with apparent ease.

As we keep walking, it almost seems like the maze is getting more complex and the paths wider, making it even harder to navigate. It doesn't help that it's quite dark in here too and we all keep bumping into the mirrors.

"Perhaps I should light the way with my magic? A small handheld flame should assist us with this endeavor." Azz suggests.

"No Azz, that's kinda cheating, isn't it? The darkness is part of the attraction's challenge." I quickly say, not wanting that. It's tricky, but it's not like we're stuck in here.

"If you say so, Master Iruma, I shall not use such a tactic," he replies, immediately giving up on the idea.

"Yeah, let's just try to get through it together!"

It really does look funny how we're all duplicated by the illusion of this place. There are dozens of each of us visible all around.

"Hey Iruma, over here!" I hear Rimuru call out, seeing her reflections wave.

I try to head towards the voice, but then from a different direction she calls out "No, no, over here!" so I head in that direction instead.

I run around for a while trying to figure out where Rimuru could possibly be; it just seems impossible to track her down, even though I can see her reflections giggling at me.

Gah! I'll just solve this myself!

Chalking up the impossibility of following Rimuru's voice to just being how this place works, I continue stumbling and bumping my way through, finally stepping outside into the daylight with everyone else.

"That was a lot of fun, wasn't it, guys?" I ask my group.

Ameri exited right after me, but everyone else was ahead so we were the last two out. We're all smiles, which means they all had fun too.

"Yeah, I had a lot of fun!"

I hear Rimuru's voice from behind me, even though I can see her right in front of me as well.

"Huh? Rimuru?!"

Rimuru in front of me, and Rimuru behind; I do a double-take before realizing what's happened, but someone beats me to the punch on pointing it out.

"You were using your bloodline magic to mess with us, weren't you?" Ameri asks, looking a little annoyed.

"Cool trick, right?" the Rimuru behind me says. "I thought I'd add to the confusion a little to make things more fun, watching you run around looking for me gave me a good laugh."

She then walks up to the one in front and they fist-bump before the first disappears with a puff of smoke right when their fists touch.

"Very impressive, Rimuru!" Azz exclaims with wonder.

"Yes, I knew you had an ability of that nature, but I had never seen it with my own eyes!" Sabnock adds, also impressed.

"You and your pranks…" Ameri defeatedly grumbles.

Lead POV

"Psst…hey, Goemon. Doesn't this guy look a lot like that 'Dark Progenitor of Evil'?"

"You mean the demon out of that storybook? How does that line go again? 'A demon most sinister, they know him as a Dark Progenitor of Evil who blesses demons with a wicked phase to remind them of the true way to be.'...or something like that. You know that's just a fairytale, right? "

"I know, man, I know, but I can't stop thinking about it. Those eyes of his are too distinct for him not to be, y'know? Plus he's giving me really weird vibes."

"I don't think you should worry too much. I know he's intimidating, but it's not like he's done anything bad to us."

"Good point…it doesn't make a lot of sense for someone that insanely powerful to be serving as Rimuru's butler…but I'm still on edge about him. I just can't shake this eerie feeling deep in my chest."

"Let's just try to have fun and not think about it. We wouldn't want to ruin our chances at this competition, right?"

"Yes, we must win so we can go on a beach trip with all the girls!"

"A beach trip? … That's not a bad idea actually," I muse, surprised that Camui's shamelessly lewd thoughts led him somewhere sensible for once. A summer beach trip has broad appeal and can be considered just innocent fun, but it would also double as a mixer so we can get closer to the girls in our class! Haruno and I are already planning a mixer, but the more opportunities to hang out with girls, the better!

"Isn't that unfair to the guys in our class, to leave them out like that?" Goemon asks.

"I'm not interested in a beach trip, I just wanna take a nap…" Picero mutters sleepily, having stirred from his nap because of all the noise.

"How does this plan not sound perfect to you?!" Camui screeches at Goemon and Picero. "Any gentleman would love to gaze upon their bodies, their exposed skin shiny from the wetness-"

"Stop it Camui! We don't need lewd descriptions of your fantasies!" I scold.

Even if we win, this idiot will guarantee the girls won't agree to a beach trip! And it was such a wonderful idea too…

"Kufufufufu…if one of you were to see such a sight that you are not worthy of, I would ask Rimuru if I could gouge your eyes out as penance. I would consider even that to be merciful, no amount of pain can balance out so great a sin as objectifying my master," Diablo, the ominous butler supervising us, butts in.

We all go silent, trying to process what he just said.

"I would do no such thing without permission, of course. You have no need to worry at the moment since I have been ordered to ensure your safety and amusement," he reassures us with a creepy smile.

"W-would Rimuru actually order s-something like that?!" Goemon asks, his voice shaking with fear from the thought.

"I h-honestly don't want to find out for m-myself…" I reply, just wanting to move on from the subject.

"Rimuru may be cold sometimes, but I don't believe she is that cruel…there's no way…" Camui mutters, probably freaking out since he's already wronged Rimuru multiple times and has gotten punished.

Diablo simply smiles an unsettling smile at us all, not answering our questions.

"What a creepy guy…I need to stay on his good side…" I mutter quietly, even more freaked out by this guy now.

"I think he might be even scarier than Professor Kalego," Camui says with a shiver.

I nod in agreement, feeling the exact same way.

"I'm starting to think he might actually be that demon from the fairy tales!" Goemon admits.

"So now you believe me?!" I ask in a harsh yet hushed tone.

"Uh-huh." he nods back.

Rimuru POV

The next stop is the Build-a-Beast workshop!

A place with a huge assortment of parts to build whatever crazy stuffed toys you can imagine, certainly a good place to make a souvenir.

I'm making an imp of sorts to give to Milim once I return, Ameri is making something blue and fluffy which is almost certainly for Iruma, and Azz is…

I burst out laughing when I see what Azz is making. It's an almost perfect replica of Kalego's familiar form!

Oddly enough, Sabnock was happy to do this with us as well, and he's working on… um… something.

Whatever he's making, it gives me the same vibes as that incredibly violent plant he created back in diabotany class. I hope it doesn't end up coming to life and trying to bite people's hands off or anything else crazy. I mean, a stuffed animal coming to life is like, a classic horror scenario from Earth's movies; and that's something I don't want to happen, not after last time.

I guess if Sabnock is having fun it doesn't really matter.

Meanwhile, Iruma looks like he's struggling to come up with an idea, he hasn't even started yet.

"Need any suggestions?" I ask as I lean over towards him.

"I'm trying to think of all the people I want to make one for, but there's too many!" Iruma says with despair.

"Hey, this isn't a sweatshop, try to keep it to just one person."

"Just one?!"

"Try to think of it as a way to show someone that you like them!"

"Hmm…"

Ameri is looking over at us with a hopeful expression, though she gets back to work as soon as she realizes I've noticed her.

We all end up finishing well before Iruma, so we all wait outside for him, somehow captivated by watching park guests stumble along riding atop what are essentially boxes with a pair of very long legs.

"How do they not crash? Those things lumber along so awkwardly, and they're so tall…" Azz says with curiosity.

"They keep coming within a hair's breadth of falling over, it's so stressful watching so many close calls…" Ameri says as she intently watches the clumsy vehicles.

…

Eventually, after several minutes, it happens.

Two of the vehicles bump their long spindly legs against each other, get entangled, and collapse into a heap with a loud crash. The guests are all fine, but they start yelling and shaking fists at each other.

"Well, I'm finally satisfied," Ameri says, finally at ease.

"Sorry I kept you all waiting!"

Iruma calls out as he runs over to us, carrying what appears to be a fluffy pink dragon marked with a white underbelly and star shapes, large enough that he's using both arms to hold it.

"That's cute! Who's it for?" I ask though I'm fairly confident that it's for Ameri.

"It's for you!"

Huh?

He thrusts the giant plushie into my arms, while I'm still stunned by the surprise.

"You're always there for me, so I just wanted to say thank you!" he says with a cheerful smile.

"Eh? Uh… Thanks!" I say as I give the dragon a squeeze, burying my face in it a little.

This thing looks terribly girly, but something feels warm and fuzzy, and it's not just this plushie…

After Ameri and Azz give their gifts to Iruma, and we manage to get Iruma to stop apologizing for not giving them anything in return, I decide I ought to do something about this very large thing Iruma gave me since it's definitely too big to be holding onto all day.

Casting Cherusil, I put an enchantment on the dragon to turn it into a silly-looking hairclip, so I can carry it around without it getting in the way or just callously stuffing it into Imaginary Space.

"Check it out, I made it more portable!" I say after affixing it to my hair.

Iruma looks delighted about it, I imagine he wasn't expecting me to carry it around since I never even use a bag and always just store things in Imaginary Space.

Demon magic sure is useful! Its strengths and weaknesses of it are very different from the magic I'm used to. Different circumstances lead to different specializations, I suppose.

"So where to next?" Azz asks eagerly.

"Who knows? The day has hardly begun, there's still plenty in store!"