“What is your name?”
The other party responded to Auraniess’s question with a dignified posture.
“Melinda. Melinda Guilford.”
“Melinda Guilford, huh? I’ve got it.”
Auraniess laughed, seemingly very amused.
*So it’s not like she’ll only remember Auraniess, Iris, and Sophia. I wish she’d remember my name too.*
We are currently under attack by a party led by Melinda, but there’s barely any tension. It would be unreasonable to be tense with Auraniess here.
But, Melinda is pretty great. To have her name remembered by Auraniess. I wish she’d remember mine.
“【Annihilation Double】”
Black winds swallowed Auraniess.
Regardless of what kind of training she’d undergone, Melinda, who Auraniess had easily dealt with before, was fighting seriously now. Auraniess herself was actually taking direct hits.
“My goodness. You’ve gotten strong!”
Auraniess began to praise Melinda, taking spell after spell. She must have been delighted. However, if I may say so, Auraniess, while taking many hits, still seemed to have an opening, whereas Melinda, who was landing all her attacks, was getting tired.
“Monster,” the Dragonewt grumbled. But isn’t it a bit late to call Auraniess a monster? It’s not that unusual for her to take direct hits, but it’s extremely rare for her to actually take damage.
“Hey, hey, what else have you learned?” Auraniess asked, her eyes sparkling. She looked like a curious child. Melinda bit her lip, looking frustrated. Well, it’s understandable to be upset when the person who just took your desperate attacks looks so cheerful. I can sympathize, but if she has a complaint, she shouldn’t have picked a fight with Auraniess.
“I have one last resort. A true trump card to use against an opponent I cannot defeat with my own power.” She said, her voice strained.
“Oh, I want to see it. I really want to see it.” Is Auraniess being a bit too enthusiastic? Melinda closed her eyes and began to chant.
“＜Tombstone that swallows light, land of judgment where darkness decays. Sinner, the judgment has come. Your body, your knowledge, vanish into the void—-【Kairā】＞”
“No way, a sealing magic!” Sophia exclaimed in surprise. She even seemed uncharacteristically flustered. Is it that powerful? Can’t Auraniess just break through it normally? Or so I thought, but when the light faded, Auraniess was nowhere to be seen.
“…Huh?” Zagan and I both doubted our eyes. Is Auraniess playing some kind of prank? My mind couldn’t keep up. What just happened? Melinda’s face was pale, she was covered in sweat, and she collapsed onto her hands and knees. She looked incredibly exhausted.
“To think that Auraniess would be sealed,” Iris murmured, also uncharacteristically. Wait, Auraniess was sealed?
“You could have defended with Wrecking, but you chose to take it head-on…” Sophia sighed. Apparently, she was sealed because she didn’t use a means of defense that she had available. Somehow, that feels so like Auraniess. I wouldn’t have believed it if someone told me she lost in terms of skill. But if she’s sealed, I have to help her. Knowing Auraniess, she’ll probably revive herself eventually. Maybe that’s why Iris and Sophia aren’t moving. Should I do it? Will I be intruding too much? …I should ask for guidance.
“Um, Iris-sama, Sophia-sama, aren’t you going to kill Melinda and break the seal?” As I spoke, Melinda’s companions moved to positions that seemed to protect her.
“You guys, run. I alone will bear their revenge.” Melinda began to say, but none of her companions fled.
“We entrusted our lives to you. We can’t run and leave you behind.”
“Didn’t you say we’d die together?”
These guys are pretty cool, even as enemies. Is this what they call heroes? However, with Auraniess defeated, they shouldn’t be able to let this go. While I was thinking this, Sophia silently shook her head.
“Sealing magic generally cannot be broken by killing the caster. We need to find a special way to release it.” Is that how it works? How would one find such a way? More importantly, what should I do about Melinda and her group? If Iris, Sophia, Zagan, and I combine our powers, it looks like we could wipe them all out… Sophia seemed to sense what I was thinking from my expression.
“Let’s let Melinda and her group go. That would be more in line with Auraniess’s wishes.” Perhaps she wants to fight them again when she revives. Knowing Auraniess, I suppose that’s possible. Because she’s Auraniess, after all. Melinda and her group retreated, albeit with caution towards us. It was amazing they didn’t show any openings despite being so battered. There are many things to learn from them.
“What should we do now?” Zagan asked. I felt the same way. If we don’t need to revive Auraniess, there doesn’t seem to be anything in particular to do. Oh, no, it’s not that I dislike training to become stronger. I offered an excuse to no one in particular.
“Do as you please. However, do not disappoint Auraniess when she revives.” Sophia said, and then left with Iris. Where were they going? We weren’t taken with them, but I don’t know if that was good or bad.
“It was good. We’ve become free.” Zagan said happily. But you know, Auraniess was certainly crazy, but she’s the one who picked me up and raised me. That’s a debt of gratitude. Or, should I say, “Demon Lord” is more appropriate? I think not to disappoint her will be quite difficult, but I’ll try my best.
“Huh? Are you serious?” Zagan was surprised. “What? Weren’t you also picked up and raised by Auraniess and the others? Why aren’t you thinking of repaying them?” I was surprised too. Or is the Hecatoncheires a race that doesn’t view gratitude as gratitude?
“No way. If I stick with Auraniess, I won’t have enough lives. I want freedom.” I can’t deny that. I’ve almost died countless times too.
“But, if that’s the case, we’ll be parting ways here, you know?” Zagan and I grew up together, and I don’t want to fight. Rather than fight, it’s better to part ways here, even if it’s lonely.
“That’s fine. I don’t want to fight with you either.” He said gruffly. I’m glad. You think of me as a friend too.
“How about a competition to see who can become a Demon Lord first?”
“I don’t mind a competition, but if we’re parting, how would we know who’s faster?” I retorted to Zagan’s suggestion.
“Then, how about this: the one who isn’t a Demon Lord when we meet next loses?”
“What if we both become Demon Lords, or neither of us does?” I couldn’t help but retort. Since we don’t know when we’ll meet, it’s not an impossible scenario.
“In that case, it’s fine if we both win or lose. Don’t think too deeply about it.” That guy Zagan isn’t thinking at all. In that case, it’s foolish to react seriously.
“Then, it’s settled.” Zagan smiled happily as I accepted. The laughter erupted simultaneously from his fifty heads, creating a bit of an imposing aura.
“See you later, Decarabia.”
“Take care, Zagan.”
And so we parted. …And never saw each other’s faces again.
I travel the land alone now. That said, there’s a limit to leveling up alone. Reckless killing is not good, so I eat when I’m hungry. And then one day, I noticed a commotion in the forest. Human-like voices, and the screams of someone. Should I go? As I approached, I saw ten smirking humans. And two dying basilisks, with a small basilisk child beside them. Seeing the child clinging to them, they must be its parents. They were probably killed fighting humans. Emotionally, I’m on the basilisks’ side, but I can only say that their deaths are an unfortunate consequence. It’s the law of this world, after all. The child, letting out a sad cry and desperately calling for its parents, is pitiful, so I’ll help.
“Even monsters feel sad when their parents die, don’t they?” a human said. What are they talking about? It’s natural to be sad when your parents die.
“Hey, let’s hurry and take it away. Baby basilisks sell for a lot.” A man with an axe said irritably. I see, they killed them for the child. It would be a lie to say I’m not angry, but I’ve also killed quite a lot under Auraniess’s orders. One of them grabbed the baby basilisk and lifted it. They have quite a bit of strength. Its cries grew louder, but its parents didn’t respond.
“Let that child go.” As I called out, the humans looked around in surprise.
“Huh? I thought I heard someone talking to us.” What rude people. I’m right in front of them.
“It’s me, it’s me.” I called out again, and the humans looked around again, eventually focusing their gazes on me.
“Huh? Was there a slime here?” Finally, they realized, but are they still unsure?
“I’ve been talking to you since a little while ago.” Once they finally understood that I was the one speaking, they looked very surprised.
“A slime can talk?”
“A slime is going to interfere with us?”
“A slime is acting so high and mighty.” What’s with the “just a slime” attitude? I’m a slime, but I’m a Demon! Well, it might not be something to be arrogant about…
“Slimes should just stay quiet and get out of the way. I’ll deal with you later.” I ignored the humans and went to the baby basilisk.
“Hey, are you okay?” I recall hearing that some powerful beings are as strong as Demons. Auraniess complained that they were “weak and boring.” So, their strength might be considerable. Are there strong humans besides Melinda? I wonder if Auraniess would be happy if she knew. The baby basilisk looked at me with trembling, pleading eyes.
In short, the parents couldn’t fight because the child was captured. What the heck? They have brains, but I don’t really like that kind of fighting. Did I get influenced by Auraniess?
“Hey, move it, slime.”
“If you don’t move, we’ll deal with you first, slime.” Well, after being told that, I guess I can pick a fight. I don’t want to be friends with humans, after all. Besides, this child’s parents were already dead.
“I’ll take you down, humans.” I declared war. The humans were still smirking, and I could see they were mocking me. Let’s defeat them quickly. I spewed Acid Breath. Catching them off guard, half of the humans writhed in pain, screaming.
“W-what is this guy?”
“Isn’t he a slime?”
It seems they didn’t know that slimes can also use breath attacks when they get stronger. While things like Auraniess’s “Volcano Breath” might be beyond me, Acid Breath is feasible. Still, it wasn’t enough to kill them all, and about half of them got back up. As expected, it’s not like Auraniess. I still have a lot to learn. For now, I’ll let the humans know.
“I’m a slime, but I’m a Demon!” As the humans turned uniformly pale, I grew exasperated. I can’t believe they didn’t realize it until now. However, if they run, I won’t chase them. Auraniess generally doesn’t bother with those who have lost the will to fight. If she found out I did that, I’d probably get beaten up. However, the humans didn’t run.
“A Demon? But you’re not that strong.” They said, breathing heavily. Well, a strong Demon would have killed you in one hit. But why are they so confident? Do they have some trump card? …I should be cautious. Unlike Auraniess, I don’t want to be caught off guard. The humans formed a formation and challenged me. There are still six of them left. Four are in front, and two are providing support from behind. If they’re coming, I’ll crush them, but is that okay?
“Kieeeh!” As the man who swung his axe and charged with a wild cry, I was about to blast him with breath when a fireball flew from behind him. The fireball engulfed the man and hit me.
“…Hey.” Wasn’t that the thing Auraniess called “Friendly Fire,” which attacks allies? While I was frozen in surprise, the others hit me with clubs, swords, and magic, but it didn’t hurt at all.
“Aren’t you guys allies?” I yelled out. Is this how you fight? Using an ally as a decoy might be one thing, but attacking with your allies? What are you thinking!
“We’re allies.” Laughing, they used their fallen comrade as a shield.
“He’s a stupid, precious ally who’s being used by me.” The others seemed to feel nothing. What kind of people are they? Was Melinda fighting for these people? Were they fighting desperately to keep these people alive? Melinda and her group could be called praiseworthy enemies, and I could understand why Iris said to let them go… but these guys!
“You guys, learn something from Melinda!”
“Huh?” They looked at me strangely at my shout.
“Melinda? Oh, that hero? Living for someone else is gross, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. No way, right? Working hard for everyone.”
“Nobody asked you to do that.”
“You’re so full of yourself, it makes me sick.”
…These guys are fundamentally different from Melinda. They were worthy adversaries to whom I should have paid respect, but these guys only fill me with anger.
“You should die.” I activated Life Drain. I was extremely careful not to kill the baby basilisk.
“Are you okay?” When I turned around, the baby basilisk was sadly licking its parent’s cheek. It probably didn’t understand that it wasn’t moving anymore. If it had been killed by an opponent like Melinda, I could offer comfort, but to be killed by such scum…
“For now, come with me.” Just as Auraniess picked me up and raised me. I think I’ll try to raise this child too. It’s a basilisk, so it will probably become strong in the future.
After starting my journey, I was surprised by humans. Why are there slaves? Humans treating humans as tools? I don’t understand. While kin might fight over mates, shouldn’t they generally help and cherish each other? Why do they find joy in killing their own kind? Melinda fought to protect her kin… but wouldn’t that woman’s efforts be in vain? It might be none of my business, but I wonder how Melinda is doing. She’s human, so she’s probably nearing the end of her lifespan, isn’t she? Auraniess hasn’t revived yet, so I really hope she stays alive for a rematch. …If I can’t have a rematch with Melinda, I’ll probably take it out on someone. Because she’s Auraniess. For now, I’ve rescued a Sphinx.
Since Auraniess was sealed, the environment surrounding us has changed. We, the beings called “Demons,” with Auraniess at the apex, were a major power, and human-like races were weak. Now, it appears humans have become the dominant power. It seems that all the beings called Demon Lords have been annihilated or sealed. I heard through rumors that Zagan was also sealed. I, too, am being targeted by humans, being called something like “Slime Demon Lord.” However, I cannot afford to be sealed. I gathered my companions and began forming an army.
“I am Decarabia. The one who rules over demons and tramples the heavens and earth.” I declared to my subordinates. This is a vow. If I can’t do this much, I can’t protect them, and it’s impossible to make Auraniess happy. Auraniess is absent, and Iris and Sophia are also missing. If that’s the case, I’m the only one who can do it.
“Follow me.” My subordinates cheered in unison. I must protect these people. I will create a place for them, a place where they can live without worry.
“We will accompany you, Lord Decarabia.” It was the basilisk I had saved long ago.
“Yes, I’m counting on you, Rubens.” He’s a newly made Demon, but being a basilisk, he’s quite powerful. After that, there’s Franklin the Sphinx, I suppose, among the notable ones. Since I didn’t originally pick them up to make them into soldiers, it can’t be helped. I just need to fight myself.
“Let’s go! Our target is the Kingdom of Holdia!” Our battle begins now.
