Story: I'm a Daemon, so what?
Disclaimer: I do not own the original setting.
Chapter 31: A Student!
- Felix -
Guy led us to an extravagant dining room, of course everything was made out of ice, but it was still quite beautiful. The table was in a long oval shape with over 10 seats.
Misery and Rain were already here waiting for us with the dishes ready to be served in a cart.
Guy took a seat at the head of the table with Velzard sitting in the middle. I decided to sit at the opposite end, opposite to Guy.
Once we were seated, Rain wheeled the cart around while Misery served us the dishes.
There seemed to be a stew of some kind along with some Dragon meat and some other grilled meat.
We all began eating once we were all served, I took a bite of the steak first seeing as it is what I am most familiar with.
From the taste it seems to be some kind of Fire Dragon, or at least it tastes similar to when Raiden cooks up some Fire Dragon for me.
Huh, the meat in the stew is something I've never had before, and it's incredibly delicious.
'Report. Component analysis complete. It is now possible to recreate the recipes Gryphon Stew, Grilled Spark Panther, and Roast Fire Dragon Steak.'
'Nice! Thanks Odin.'
"So what do you think Felix?" Asked Guy.
I assume she's asking about the food. "It is quite delicious, probably as good as the food my Maid cooks and I love her food."
Guy looked interested. "Oh? You have a maid as well?" For some reason Guy was acting like we were comrades all of a sudden.
"Yeah?"
She shook his head with a sigh. "Nothing nothing." Guy said as she shot a glare to an innocently whistling Rain and a serious looking Misery.
"Hmm, maybe I should stop by sometime to try your Maids food if you are comparing it to Misery's who has been cooking food for me for millenia." Guy asked.
"Hmm, as long as you don't go on a rampage or anything I don't mind. Just make sure you show up when I'm there since I visit Rimuru and Milim relatively often." I responded.
"The Slime eh? He has an Ultimate Skill too, truly this century is becoming quite interesting." Guy muttered.
So Guy knows that Rimuru has an Ultimate Skill huh? I doubt she is aware of what those Skills are though, not to mention I don't think Guy would even consider Rimuru having 4 Ultimate Skills he acquired on his own merit.
Hell even I have only acquired two Ultimate Skills on my own, the rest are copied. And even that's debatable since Odin helped push things along.
As we were finishing up the meal I said, "By the way Velzard."
She paused her eating and looked at me. "Yes?"
"Whenever you decide to visit Veldora come see me first, who knows what will happen if you just show up in Tempest, Veldora will panic, that's for sure. Not to mention Rimuru's reaction to another True Dragon showing up. It would just be easier if you come to me and then I can take you to Tempest and introduce you to Rimuru. Veldora listens to Rimuru so maybe he'll be willing to talk to you if Rimuru encourages it." I respond.
"Hmm, I see. Okay then, I will see you before I visit Veldora." Velzard acquiesced.
I nodded. "Good."
It's good that she listened, who knows if she just shows up in Tempest a fight might just start due to multiple overreactions. Velzard has more raw power than me, even when I'm using Satanael at 40%.
Hmm speaking about unsealed form, Odin had detected that she was limiting her power output for some reason.
I wonder why?
"Velzard." I called out.
She looked at me. "Yes?"
"Why is a portion of your power sealed?"
"Ah, you can even sense that. It is far easier to control my power in this sealed state. In my true form accidentally waving my hand may obliterate Veldora or Velgrynd. Not to mention another side benefit that I will not be talking about." Ah, so similar to what Freeza had done huh?
I nodded. Controlling one's power is a real issue in this world huh? Not everyone is fortunate to have a Skill that can control your own power for you.
In her current form I'd say her raw power is a decent bit greater than mine, but who knows about how strong she really is in her true form?
I'd like to think I'd still have a chance seeing as she fought Guy to a standstill, but who knows. I'm sure Guy fought her to a standstill with pure technique rather than raw power, after all Milim wasn't even born at that point so he couldn't have used Satanael to power up.
It's probably just best to avoid a fight with her in general.
We quickly finished our meal at which point I decided it was about time to leave.
"Alright, I've been far from my territory for long enough now so I am going to head back."
"I see, then feel free to visit me whenever you wish, I could use the distraction." Guy responded.
"Yeah yeah." I turned towards Velzard and gave her a wave, one she responded to.
I snapped my fingers and appeared inside of my bedroom back in my territory.
No matter how much I teleport it still feels surreal.
"My Lord!" I heard someone say from outside the door.
"Come in!" I respond.
The door opens and in comes all of my direct subordinates, Saeko, Raiden, Kurumi, Arcueid, Megumin, and Lalatina. I could even see Ingvild hiding out in the back.
"You didn't all have to come and greet me, I told you I would be fine."
"Haha, I knew you'd be fine!" Megumin said enthusiastically. "So how'd it go! Did you fight?!"
Of course that's what she wants to know. "We did spar a bit though nothing serious."
"Ah, I wish I could have watched that." Said Megumin.
"I am happy for your safe return My Lord." Said Arcueid.
I gave her a nod.
Kurumi just shifted into her fox form and took a seat on my shoulder while Lalatina said, "As expected of my Master!" Man these guys took my meeting with Guy as a really big deal huh? They seemed quite confident in my return too.
"Ah! Felix-sama, I am glad that you have returned!" Said Saeko.
"Thank you Saeko."
Raiden just assumed a position behind me, not saying anything.
Ah, someone is missing huh? "Where's Sukuna at?"
Arcueid is the one who responded this time. "As your butler it is his duty to make sure your reign is unimpeded, or so he said. So I sent him to deal with some bugs who were not following the rules of your territory My Lord."
Oh, so he is sort of acting as a prosecutor or something?
"I see, good work Arcueid. Now as much as I appreciate you guys greeting me I need to head to the training dimension. I want to fully understand the new Skills I got from my fight with Guy."
"Of course My Lord." They all left, though not after each giving me their own version of a goodbye.
I teleported into the training dimension to begin fully understanding what truly changed. The moment I got Gabriel I could feel my understanding over the concept of Time improve astronomically, my understanding of Infons also increased, though I'm pretty sure that's due to Odin.
Ouroboros on its own is primarily focused on Space with some power over Time, but Gabriel's power over Time makes Ouroboros' former power over Time a complete joke.
Of course now that Ouroboros has been upgraded using data from Gabriel that is different.
Honestly gaining Gabriel has been a massive boon, my raw power might not have increased but I am far stronger than I was before for a few reasons.
Gabriel's sub-skills include Fixation, this is what Velzard used on Guy and attempted to use on me.
It basically locks something to its current state, essentially putting something into a temporal stasis.
I was capable of doing something similar using Magic from Black Clover but this is far superior to that, and far harder to break out of, after all it was able to freeze Guy Crimson, if only temporarily.
Gabriel also has Space-Time Manipulation, more specifically under Space-Time Manipulation was Temporal Manipulation. This allows Gabriel to have far higher power over Time which was added to Ouroboros along with Fixation.
Odin disassembled Gabriel and used the data from it to improve Ouroboros so everything that Gabriel was able to do, now Ouroboros can too.
Except for one Skill.
The next Skill is actually a World System Skill called Eternal World. This is a World System Skill that brings everything inside the user's domain to an absolute halt, locking them in place and nullifying all kinds of attacks.
There were a few reasons that this was not added to Ouroboros, for one thanks to the data Odin gathered I have something far superior to Eternal World, but Eternal World is basically Fixation just applied to everything inside the user's domain. Not something I need, if I ever do need it I can instantly have Odin recreate the ability.
Hmm, maybe I can have Odin work on a Skill that allows me to use all the Skills I have completely analyzed without actually having the Skill in question.
This way I can use a ton of Ultimate Skills but not have to suffer the strain on my soul.
'Sufficient data has not been gathered to accomplish such a feat. Odin will gather the data and create a Skill that fulfills the Master's requirements.'
That's about what I expected, the Skill I have in mind is more broken than most other Ultimate Skills after all.
'Still, good work Odin.'
Now the biggest gain out of this visit by far was one single ability, an ability that made me almost unbeatable.
Time Stop.
Time Stop is by no means a simple feat, and this isn't some fake Time Stop like the one Gasper Vladi from High School DxD is capable of.
This is a bonafide Time Stop, as in it completely stops the flow of Time throughout all of Veldanava's Creation.
If I were to use Time Stop now, the world of Jujutsu Kaisen would be frozen, hell each and every universe will be affected.
This is absolute Hax.
Of course I have not actually used this ability yet so there may be a bit of a learning curve, even with Odin, but still, Time Stop!
Not to mention it costs an absolutely obscene amount of energy, but I can afford that thanks to Magicule Breeder Reactor.
The only way to "move" in a Time Stop is by being a Digital Nature which I recently became thanks to Odin's help.
Digital Natures are a subspecies of Divine Natures that can shift their entire beings into purely digital form between sets of Infons.
Digital Natures are able to move in a Time Stop since they don't actually move their particles from place to place, they instead move their information between different sets of static Infons. It's due to this that the laws of physics are not broken and the speed of light is not exceeded.
During the duration of a Time Stop, the flow of time is completely frozen for all worlds, resulting in a place where the laws of physics don't fully apply called the Stopped World. Within the Stopped World, matter and energy of any kind cannot move and things such as molecular binding forces do not exist, making physical durability meaningless.
This is what makes it a real Time Stop rather than something like Forbidden Balor's View.
This is why only beings who can think with their hearts and are able to manipulate Infons are able to perceive the Stopped World, and only those who have managed to gain the ability to transfer their entire existence in information form between sets of Infons, Digital Natures, are able to "move" in the stopped world, everyone else is stopped, they won't even realize Time has stopped either as they aren't even capable of perceiving it.
Since in the Stopped World particles can't flow emission type attacks are practically useless. Of course while Magic can't be cast in a Time Stop the effects of already cast Magic still apply, like Barriers. But the only real way to damage someone who is capable of moving in the Stopped World is by bombarding them with Infons, rewriting the target's information.
Basically battles in the Stopped World are almost entirely determined by who can manipulate Infons better, and I have Odin, a master at manipulating Infons now thanks to the detailed analysis she has done ever since I became a Digital Nature.
Of course for those who can't perceive a Time Stop all I would need to do is stop Time and then bombard them with Infons when they can't defend.
Power doesn't matter in the Stopped World after all.
That isn't even all I got from my visit, I even got Metatron!
It's safe to say that my trip to the Ice Continent was worth it despite the potential dangers.
I really love golden gooses like Guy and Velzard.
Hmm, now that I have sufficient data about World System Skills I have an idea.
'Odin can you create me a Skill utilizing the data from Higuruma's Technique and any other data you think is suitable?'
'Acknowledged.'
Intrinsic Skill: Ruler's Authority has been gained.
Heh.
I snapped my fingers and created a brand new Dimension. I've been planning on this for a while and I finally got around to it. It's been about a week since I got back from the Ice Continent now.
I turned towards Raiden and Porunga. "There, the gravity will get stronger and stronger the closer you get to the center of the Dimension, use this to train up the Dragon Corps physiques and speed."
"Yes Master." Said Raiden.
"Hmm, this will be incredibly helpful for those young ones, they are always so rowdy and complaining about how they aren't getting stronger. Thank you My Lord, this training room should help improve their strengths a fair amount." Said Porunga with a bow.
That guy has been taking his duties super seriously, he has also grown in strength quite a bit, after all he is Megumin's sparring partner. Though he's more of a test dummy at this point for her since Porunga isn't capable of fighting Megumin equally.
"Alright, good work you two."
Hmm, I should probably let Rimuru know about Velzard's inevitable visit, the more time he has to prepare the better.
"I'm going to be visiting Tempest, though I don't plan on staying there so I shouldn't take too long."
"Yes Master, I shall inform the others." Said Raiden.
I nodded. I snapped my fingers and appeared in my residence at Tempest.
It seems Rimuru is in The Dungeon, normally I wouldn't be able to sense him as easily if he was in The Dungeon as The Dungeon itself is an entirely different Dimension, on top of that each Floor is a different Dimension as well. Thankfully Rimuru had Ramiris basically gave me Admin Access allowing me to freely teleport in, shift some floors around as well as visibly see what is going on inside The Dungeon without being there.
Ramiris' Small World is broken. It suits the name, it is basically a small world where Ramiris is god.
As I was walking to The Dungeon I took in the sights. Everyone was moving about setting up everything that is necessary for the festival. After all, it is going to start in a couple weeks. Multiple Monarchs will be attending so Tempest really needs to go all out.
Once I was in The Dungeon I sensed a disturbance from Floor 100. Is someone fighting Veldora?
Rimuru seems to be minding his own business on Floor 60 so it probably isn't a big deal, but I want to watch this fight anyways.
It's not every day that you get to see a True Dragon fighting after all.
Once I arrived at Floor 100 I started at Veldora's challenger in surprise.
Fucking Hinata is trying to take on a True Dragon?! I'd laugh if it wasn't so pitiful.
She was actually putting up a decent fight, though Veldora seems to be barely even trying.
Hinata might be the youngest Saint in history, even if only an Incomplete Saint. She even has a Hero's Egg but that isn't enough. Maybe once her Egg hatches.
Veldora wasn't even in his True Dragon form and he was still toying with Hinata with ease.
Still that didn't mean Hinata wasn't impressive, she was masterfully manipulating the Elementals she was contracted to. She had multiple Greater Elementals summoned and working with her.
The Greater Elemental of Earth War Gnome, the Greater Elemental of Fire Ifrit, The Greater Elemental of Space Aether, The Greater Elemental of Water Undine, and The Greater Elemental of Wind Sylphide.
Each Greater Elemental is around the Special-A Rank, for most Hinata's current lineup would be unbeatable.
Along with that Hinata was using her Holy Mail to temporarily elevate her flesh to the status of a Complete Saint.
Unfortunately for Hinata her Unique Skill: Usurper isn't going to help much against Veldora as the difference between them is far too vast, Veldora doesn't even need to use his Ultimate Skill.
"Hadoken! Hadoken! Hadoken!" Hinata actually had to take Veldora's casual attack incredibly seriously.
Man it's pretty boring watching these low level fights.
I wonder who this other bug is though?
I turned to the little Beetle that was watching the fight alongside me.
"And who are you?" I asked.
I could sense his Exoskeleton was partially made out of Rimuru's Slime body so he definitely wasn't an invader, I just haven't met him before.
"Greetings Lord Felix. The name bestowed upon me by My Lord is Zegion, it is an honor to meet one of Lord Rimuru's close friends." The Beetle sounded out.
"I see, it's nice to meet you as well Zegion." I responded. Though why is he watching this fight? Is he going to be a Monster in The Dungeon? Oh well, none of my business.
Though his armor is incredibly interesting.
'Answer. The Insect known as Zegion is part of a Species that possess the rare ability to Incarnate themselves in the Material World by automatically forming a body out of the surrounding Magicules and natural Elements. Their thick metallic exoskeletons are infused with metals that grant them a sturdy physical defense in addition to a strong resistance to magical attacks. Depending on the specific sub-species they might possess extraordinary abilities like high-speed flight or deadly venom, but even the weakest among their kind reach a solid B-rank. It is theoretically possible after evolution for their Exoskeleton to be made up of the Legendary Metal, Hihi'irokane.'
I could feel my eyes slightly widen as I heard what Odin said. Not only could they incarnate themselves but their Exoskeletons have the potential to reach the God Grade.
I definitely need to keep an eye on this Zegion, I'm curious as to how far he will grow.
Veldora yawned. "Are you done yet? I have some manga to catch up on."
Hinata's brows twitched. "Fine! I'll finish this with one strike then!"
I noticed Hinata begin to cast Disintegration, but rather than use it how it normally is she imbued it into her sword.
Is she going to pull an Artoria?! Now I'm interested.
Hinata then began charging at Veldora.
"Oh? You're approaching me? Instead of running away, you're coming closer to me?"
Did he just? Damn, all I can say is that it was clean.
"I can't beat the shit out of you without coming closer!" Hinata responds.
I can't tell if she has just been educated in meme culture or if she actually meant what she said.
Veldora seemed to become excited. "Oh! Then by all means come closer!"
"Melt Slash!" Yelled Hinata.
Hinata then struck him with her Disintegration imbued sword. I'm not quite sure why Veldora didn't avoid her attack, probably confidence in his own abilities.
And he would be right, Hinata's attack barely even scratched Veldora even though the strike itself was approaching the Speed of Light.
Still, the fact that Hinata scratched Veldora as a Saint is a feat on its own. That's actually fairly impressive, I can see why she is called a prodigy.
Veldora of course ignored his wound. "Haha, you'll have to try harder to take me down!" He boasted.
Hinata just sighed in resignation.
I choose this moment to appear. "Say what you will Veldora but it is quite impressive that she was even able to wound a True Dragon like you."
"Indeed! She has even learnt about The Sacred Texts!"
"The Sacred Texts?" Hinata asked confused.
Veldora nodded. "Yes! I understood the reference you made!"
"The reference?" Ah, she really didn't mean to make a reference huh? That's predictable but disappointing.
It seems Hinata has been doomed to being uncultured, what a sad sad life.
"Still, that was quite impressive Hinata. You might just have a shot at becoming someone noteworthy if you continue to improve."
I could tell my comment pissed Hinata off a bit, after all I was indirectly saying she didn't matter as she was now.
And that was true. To matter you at least need to be capable of matching an Ultimate Skill wielder, and as far as I know Hinata does not possess any God Grade Equipment to lift her to that level.
"I see. Thank you for the compliment Lord Felix." Hinata responded. Though I could tell she was holding her tongue.
Heh, she is almost as fun to mess with as Luminous is.
"You know, I wouldn't mind sparring against you on occasion." I offer. After all, I am quite curious about Hinata. She is the youngest Saint in history, a history that included the first True Hero. And on top of that Hinata has the potential to become a True Hero.
It would be fun to see how a Hero could grow with the help of a Demon Lord.
"Thank you for the offer Lord Felix, but I will withhold from doing that." Hinata responded.
"Luminous told you not to huh?" From the twitch of Hinata's lips I could tell I hit the mark.
"But do you really want to give up an opportunity to become stronger just because your Lady told you to?" I questioned. After all, one thing I know about Hinata for sure is that she is chasing strength.
I'm not sure why, but she needs it for something.
I could tell that Hinata was wavering. "Just ask me whenever I'm around Tempest if you decide to accept." I'll also get to beat her up under the guise of training.
She still needs to be humbled for being a fucking idiot, following along with Falmuth's plans. I'm sure a couple of beatings from me should suffice.
"Teacher! That was an incredible fight!" Did Zegion call Veldora teacher? Veldora taking on a student is surprising.
Veldora nodded proudly. "Indeed! Did you see me utilizing my Veldora Style Killing Arts!?"
"Yes teacher!"
"Good!" Veldora nodded.
What the fuck is going on.
"Since when was Zegion your student Veldora?" I asked.
"Ah, you have already met him it seems. Zegion here asked to become stronger to be of more assistance to Rimuru. I saw the drive in him so I decided to take him on as a student! My very own Shonen protagonist!" Of course it all routes back into Veldora's weebness.
"Hinata here has even begun teaching his friend Apito!" There is another bug?
Hinata nodded. "Indeed, she shows potential. I plan to bring my Holy Knights here to train, I'm sure they will grow tremendously in The Dungeon."
I snorted. "That will be funny to watch."
Veldora agreed. "Indeed! It will be quite entertaining watching them struggle through all the traps we have set."
"I'm sure those four Arch Dragons will be quite tough for them to beat. Where did those Dragons come from anyways Veldora?" I asked.
"Ah, my niece Milim brought them here. She said they would be fun monsters for The Dungeon and Rimuru agreed."
Of course it was Milim. Still these Dragons might actually end up becoming Dragon Lords. After all they will constantly be bathed in Veldora's Magicules, that's gotta have an effect on them.
That's four Awakened Demon Lord level Monsters.
The Dungeon's difficulty increased drastically with the increase of these Arch Dragons as long as they eventually become Dragon Lords. Though even as mere Arch Dragons they are still far stronger than most.
"By the way, I met your sister Velzard Veldora." Veldora froze up the moment he heard me.
Hinata was the one who looked shocked. "You met the Frost Dragon Velzard?! The partner of Guy Crimson."
I nodded. "Her and Guy as well."
"To call the strongest Demon Lord so casually…" Ah, I forgot how big of a deal those two names are to most.
"M-My sister you said?" Veldora asked fearfully.
I nodded. "Mhmm."
"To have even Veldora shaking in fear…" Hinata mumbled.
"D-Did she say anything?" Veldora asked hopefully.
"She did, she asked how you were doing and if she needed to come discipline you."
Veldora was straight up shivering now. "Of course being the bro I am, I said that you were doing perfectly okay and that you were not causing mass destruction."
Veldora was crying crocodile tears as he jumped and hugged me. "Ah! Felix my brother! If you ever need anything come to me! I am the King of The Dungeon, I will help you with whatever you need!"
"For even teacher to be this scared of his sister, she must be a true monster." Said Zegion.
"She seemed quite interested in your change." I said as Veldora was still hugging me.
"Interested?" Veldora pulled back and asked slightly warily.
I nodded. "Mhmm, she said she would visit you soon."
"Gah! I must hide! Felix! Can you hide me in your territory for a year, no, ten years?!" Veldora pleaded.
"Your sister visiting isn't that big of a deal Veldora, she seemed to be genuinely regretful about scarring you. Besides, if she picks a fight Rimuru and I have your back."
Before I could continue I was interrupted. "What's happening here?" I turned to the voice and was met with a blue blob.
"Nothing, I was just telling Veldora that his sister said she would visit him soon."
"Sister?" Rimuru asked.
"Yup, Velzard seemed to be interested in how he was doing now and said she wanted to visit. I didn't want to be the guy to tell the strongest True Dragon no."
Of course I'm going to leave out the fact that this visit is probably my fault.
It's best to live in ignorance.
"Uhh, I guess that makes sense if she is Veldora's sister. But didn't Veldora say she used to kill him?"
I nodded. "Yeah, but that was due to Veldora rampaging, as long as he controls himself he should be fine."
"That's true. Don't worry Veldora! We got your back!" Rimuru tried encouraging.
"No no, you two don't understand. My sister is evil! An absolute demoness!" That's ironic considering she is a True Dragon.
"Just give it a shot Veldora. Hasn't it been a long time since you've seen each other, maybe she has changed just like you did?" I doubt she changed but I'm just saying whatever bullshit comes to mind.
Rimuru backed me up. "Yeah yeah, if you can change then so can she!"
"Y-You might be right." Veldora mumbled.
"Of course we are! Now come on, get yourself together, don't you want your disciple to see you as someone cool and awesome?" Rimuru said.
That seemed to affect Veldora. "You're right! I can't show such an image to my student!" I'm not sure if he is bullshitting here and just putting on a front or what.
Rimuru nodded. "That's right!"
I noticed Zegion was clapping with his little bug hands in the background while Hinata was just staring, flabbergasted.
"Is this a True Dragon? Lady Luminous' most hated enemy?"
I gave her a pat on the shoulder and whispered, "You'll get used to it."
Hinata didn't give me much of a reaction except nodding.
Her world view is really shattering today huh?
Rimuru then pulled me to the side and transformed into his human form. He turned to me and whispered, "Why didn't you tell me his sister is coming?!"
I shrugged. "That's what I came here to tell you about. But I came across Veldora first and wanted to see how his spar with Hinata would go."
"Gah! Hopefully she comes after the festival at least." Rimuru said.
"It would be fun to show her around Tempest though. And doesn't Veldora plan to open a takoyaki stall? I'm sure she would love to try her brother's cooking."
Rimuru sighed. "All I can do is hope."
Man Rimuru really doesn't want Velzard to show up at the Festival, I don't blame him, managing one True Dragon is probably hard enough.
"Ah, by the way why is Hinata here?" I asked.
"Hmm? Oh Luminous sent her over so that relations between Tempest and Ruberious could deepen, we've even discussed having a branch of the Holy Church built in Tempest to show our relationship to the outside world."
I nodded. "I see, after all if the Holy Church approves of you then Tempest can't be that bad right?"
Rimuru nodded excitedly. "Exactly!"
"So how does that have anything to do with Hinata fighting Veldora again?"
"Oh that? I ended up showing her The Dungeon and she asked if she could train here along with her knights, though her knights will have to wait until The Dungeon is officially open. She was pretty easily able to get to Floor 60 at which point she asked to challenge Veldora who agreed."
I nodded. "Well that's probably for the best then. It's best she's humbled now then underestimating an opponent."
"Oh! I didn't know you cared Felix! Was I right in what I said last time?! Are you aiming to bag Hinata?!" Rimuru yelled out.
Seeing as he yelled it of course everyone else heard. I could see that Hinata was looking at me with twitching lips and a blush. Or is she just super angry?
Veldora was shooting me a thumbs up while Zegion just looked confused.
I smacked Rimuru on the back of the head. "Keep it quiet you."
"Haha, I'm just helping you! Umu! Consider me as your wingman in this quest of yours." He responded.
I rolled my eyes. "Whatever." I could tell it was pointless to tell Rimuru that I was in fact not into Hinata.
She was hot for sure, but her personality left a lot to be desired. Not to mention my horrible first impression.
"Hehe, there's no need to be shy." Rimuru responded slyly.
"Weren't you a virgin until recently?" I taunt.
Rimuru began poking me. "Gah! Well I'm not one anymore!"
I grinned at him smugly. "And who do you have to thank for that hmm?"
"Grr, fine thanks." Rimuru whispered.
"No problem bud, just remember this." I said seriously.
Rimuru seemed to understand the seriousness of the topic as he leaned in. "Yes?"
"Bros before hoes."
Rimuru froze for a moment before yelling, "That's what you had to say?! I thought it was something serious?!"
"They are wise words though."
Rimuru huffed. "That's besides the point!"
"Yeah yeah. Anyways anything new around here? I assume you are still coming up with more things to add to the festival."
Rimuru nodded. "Uh huh, Veldora, Ramiris, and I have been working on getting The Dungeon done. The later Floors don't matter as much right now since it will be a while before anyone gets to them but we are making sure nothing is wrong with the early Floors."
I nodded. "I see, what about the tournament? I'm excited for that."
"The tournament is basically all ready, the arena is ready, the announcer has been chosen, I also plan to have Diablo be the referee to stop people if they go too far." Rimuru responded.
"Heh, I'm sure he will do a great job at that, I doubt anyone in the tournament will be able to match Diablo unless any of our subordinates decide to join."
"Yup! He seemed to be happy with it."
I rolled my eyes."Diablo would be happy with anything you asked him to do."
"Eh, maybe?" Rimuru is underestimating Diablo's loyalty. If Rimuru asked him to turn into a female and bend over Diablo would do it in a heartbeat.
Fucking Primordials man.
"Ah I've been meaning to ask you, but did you want to supply the alcohol for the Festival? I remember Luminous liked it quite a bit, so you might get some other Nations interested as well."
Hmm, more trade will always be useful. At the very least I'm sure Arcueid can make use of the connections I make. We also have plenty of our special alcohol since Carrion has been sending a bunch of those fruits over.
I nodded. "Yeah, I'll let Arcueid know to prepare a bunch."
"Great! Ah, by the way Kurobe said the weapon he was making for Raiden should be done in a few days."
I nodded. "Alright, I'll come to pick it up in a couple days then."
"By the way is it me or does your presence seem a bit different?" Rimuru asked.
Ah, he must be talking about one of the passive abilities of my new Intrinsic Skill: Ruler's Authority.
It has a passive effect of giving me a far more authoritative Aura. If I wish to make full use of it I can make it so that those weaker than me will be extremely intimidated by me, along with being extremely respectful.
It basically forces others to see me as an absolute Ruler that they must bow to. Of course that's only if I enforce the effect of my Aura.
Right now it just makes people take me seriously just by looking at me, along with treating me respectfully as long as they don't have hostile intentions. For those who do have hostile intentions it makes them feel like they are basically looking at death.
And that's only the passive ability.
"It's a new Skill of mine." I respond.
"I see." I inwardly smirked, he's probably pretty confused since Raphael can't analyze it, Odin for the win!
"Alright why don't we go group back up with those four, who knows what sort of mess they'll cause now that Ramiris has shown up." Said Rimuru.
"You're probably right."
The little Pixie was buzzing around Veldora, probably asking about Velzard since she is capable of monitoring everything in The Dungeon, so she of course heard our conversation.
"Hehe, it's been a long time since I've seen Velzard!" I overheard.
She turned towards us and waved. "Hi Felix! Hi Rimuru!"
I gave her a wave back. "What's up Ramiris, are you still lazing about?" I tease.
"Hah! I've been working very hard, thank you very much! Don't make me beat you up." Ramiris said as she began shadow boxing around me.
"Alright alright, cut that out now." Rimuru said.
Ramiris pouted. "Fine! But only because you gave me candy earlier!"
"Ghaha, don't worry Ramiris! Together you and I shall make this Dungeon unbeatable!" Veldora boasted.
"Umu!" Ramiris nodded.
"Ah by the way Hinata, while the Holy Church is being built, why don't you stay with Felix? His place is far better than any guest accommodations we have available for you." Rimuru said while winking at me discreetly.
Dude. Could you be any more obvious? Hell why would I let her stay at my place in the first place?
Hinata looked at me and then looked away with a blush. "I am quite okay Rimuru, I am fine with my current accommodations."
Don't tell me she actually bought Rimuru's shit about me being into you? Didn't you hate my guts or something an hour ago.
What kind of tsundere behavior is this?
Fucking women. Why are they so complicated?
'Ah, Odin you really are the best, not complicated at all. Umu, you are the ideal partner.'
'!'
'Eh, what was that?'
'Nothing, it was your imagination.'
I already know how this song and dance is gonna go.
I avoided a slash aimed right for my head and then sent a small Magic Bullet towards the attacker causing them to back off and block it.
"You're going to need to try harder than that if you want me to take you seriously Hinata." I taunt.
Hinata was glaring at me as she got into her stance.
I've been occasionally sparring with Hinata after she politely requested it from me a little while ago. Just like I knew she cracked at my offer. After all, personal training from a Demon Lord was too good to resist from most.
Of course my training was difficult but she could handle it. Hinata currently had her Holy Mail activated so her flesh was elevated.
"I think I'll start trying a little bit more." Hinata stiffened up, her grip on her sword tightened as she began observing every inch of her surroundings.
I've seriously traumatized her. It's so much fun! One day when Rimuru was watching us at the end he looked at me like I was the devil.
I picked up a branch from the ground and began reinforcing it with my Divine Aura.
This branch is not to be underestimated now that it is being reinforced, Divine Aura is capable of elevating any attacks or Equipment straight into the God Grade.
Hinata charged at me, her Legend Grade blade drawn. Of course I casually blocked it with my overpowered stick.
After a few more attacks from Hinata I decided to spice things up a bit with Magic. Nothing she wasn't capable of dealing with, but it would still be a challenge.
I waved my free hand and created multiple Icicle Lances and sent them towards Hinata. She effortlessly dealt with them while blocking one of my attacks.
Hmm, maybe something a bit more then? I snapped the fingers of my free hand creating 3 balls of compressed Space and sent them towards Hinata.
Unlike the Icicle Lances she was actually wary of these. She attempted to cut them in half with her Legend Grade blade but before she could do so I appeared in front of her and kicked her in the stomach sending her flying towards the edge of the barrier I placed.
The Archangel Shootdown was just a distraction after all.
I shook my head. "You always focus on one thing Hinata, even while distracted you need to be aware of your enemy. You fall for casual distractions far too easily."
"You call that a casual distraction?! That would erase a normal Enlightened!"
"They are weak, you aren't as weak." I responded.
"Grrr, you're always like this!" Hinata complained.
Ah yes, there is that. Ever since I began teaching her, Hinata has become far more casual, and dare I say it affectionate.
Little Hinata might just be developing her first crush, I didn't even do much, I just beat her up regularly and told her how to improve. I swear this girl is starved for any sort of affection, it's quite amusing actually. Though maybe I'm just her type? I am quite attractive after all.
Still it's too bad that her crush likely won't be going anywhere, at least for a long long time.
Though there is also the chance that I am just reading this completely wrong, Hinata might just have a more soft spot for her teachers. I remember Rimuru telling me a big part of why she and Rimuru fought was because she thought Rimuru killed her teacher.
Though she was still quite the rowdy girl, I remember after our first sparring session, a bloody, beaten Hinata came up to me and said that if I were to go against Humanity she would slay me.
I laughed, that's probably the most genuine laugh I'd had in a long long time.
She seemed to take that as a challenge and has been striving to prove me wrong ever since.
I shook my head and focused back on the fight.
"Now let's dance!" I yelled as I charged at Hinata, stick in hand.
After Hinata blocked a few of my strikes I decided to get a little serious and began to prepare to use one of the Hazy Style's "mysteries". Basically I pierce Hinata in five of her ten vital points, while using the other five as feints.
"Plum Blossoms - Five Petals Thrust!" I yelled as I attacked all of Hinata's weak points simultaneously, of course I didn't attack at my max speed.
Hinata needs to actually be able to avoid these after all.
Out of the five points I was aiming for, none managed to hit, Hinata isn't called a prodigy for nothing after all.
I clapped as I said, "Nice work Hinata-chan!"
She glared. "Don't call me that!"
"Ah, did you want me to call you just by your first name?! How forward, but if that is what you wish for I will not resist your advances."
Ah the blush on her face was adorable. Teasing her has become one of my new hobbies.
"Ah! Just go die Felix." Hinata yelled, embarrassed.
"Haha, maybe you can try to kill me like you claimed you would if I went against Humanity."
"You still don't think I can do it?"
"Nope!" I responded cheerfully.
It's not even funny how much progress Hinata will need to make to even have a chance at wounding me let alone permanently killing me.
"Alright, now let's keep going!" I yelled.
I snapped my fingers and teleported back to Azeroth, even though I've been having some fun teaching Hinata I'm not living in Tempest.
Teaching Hinata is just a side hobby after all. Though I am curious about how my intervention in her journey as a Hero will affect things.
I don't think there has been a single Hero in history that has been taught by a Demon Lord, but who knows, I don't know everything.
"Welcome back Master." I turned towards the voice and nodded.
"Hello Raiden, thanks for making sure everything was taken care of while I was away."
"It is my duty Master."
"Yes yes I know. I'll go pick up your weapon tomorrow, that's when Kurobe said it would be ready."
Raiden nodded. "I see, did you wish for me to come with you?"
I shook my head. "Nah, it's fine. I'll probably stick around Tempest for a bit before coming back here."
"Very well Master."
I have a discord server, come hang out if you want! /VxR5Gn72Fp I also have a channel in Shiro's Gaming Omniverse.
Author's Note:
Sup guys, we're getting closer and closer to The Festival. This chapter was mostly just a cool down chapter after last weeks action heavy chapter.
If you are wondering about the shift in personality in Hinata then I'll just say Felix is misunderstanding a bit, and Odin didn't feel the need to inform him. Think of it as Odin's developing ego being jealous. Hinata acted pretty similar with Rimuru after she learned he was an otherworlder and that he meant no harm. And since Felix is her teacher she sees him in a similar positive light.
Felix generally has an easy going personality so he goofed off a bit in front of Hinata which caused her to relax her guard about him even though she has heard of how ruthless he can be. Of course she is still far from having a "crush" on Felix like he thinks, but who knows if things will develop in that direction.
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