Chronicles of the Star-King

Chapter 1: Veldora's Furtive Plight

"Aah, It's so delicious"

Rimuru was having the time of his slimy life, eating one delectably prepared dish after another, devouring them like a glutton. He was quite happy to have regained his sense of taste, and would gladly gobble up any kind of new food his subordinates would create, especially after him giving them quite a few recipes of his previous world.

'This looks far better than the one Shion cooked'—he thought as he devoured yet another piece from the many before him, unaware of the glare the purple-haired Kijin had on those.

Hmm?

The Slime's gaze wandered off to a nearby tree, finding Veldora, his sworn brother, leaning against it. Usually, he would have ignored this and went by his own business but something stopped him this time. Veldora, unlike his usual cheery and boisterous nature, looked downcast with an odd frown on his lips.

He theorized that maybe Veldora was upset about his scolding about telling Diablo about the Walpurgis when the latter was in an important mission, after all, he did know Veldora acted quite childishly at times despite his age.

He stood up, an action noticed by few because of the festival, and began pacing to the Storm Dragon, a cake holding plate in hand. 'A sweet should calm him down'—he thought as he recalled the dragon's sweet tooth.

"Hey Veldora! Here, take this"

Rimuru's jovial tone caught Veldora off guard, his eyes widening for a bit as he fixated his eyes on the slime he trusted dearly.

"R-Rimuru?", he voiced out, surprise clear as day in his words, "What are you doing here?"

«Master, Veldora seems to be in a distressed state. However, it is also concluded that he is reminiscing about something»

Rimuru took note of the words of wisdom that came from 『Raphael』. He wondered what Veldora was thinking about that would make even him have such an expression.

"Just here to give you cake? If you don't want it, then I will eat it", Rimuru expected Veldora to forget about whatever he was thinking about and jump on him, trying to take the cake from his hands but was left utterly surprised by the latter's words.

"Oh? I'll eat it later, thanks"

Rimuru was taken aback for a moment, before quickly regaining his bearings. Concern was now beginning to invade his mind.

"What are you so worrying about?"

Rimuru's eyes widened, having accidentally voiced his thoughts. He looked at Veldora, who blinked before bursting out his usual rowdy laughter.

"KUHUHUHAHAHAHA... I am the Storm Dragon Veldora Tempest; I do not need to worry over trivial things... KUHUHUHAHAHAHA"

Rimuru was not buying any of that, and continued to stare at Veldora, whose composure faltered after a few seconds.

He sighed before him eyes turned up to the starry night sky, his eyes showing a scarce feeling of nostalgia. "I just thought my brother had returned for a bit, but I guess it was just a mistake I made when I felt something familiar... just like last time"

'Brother?'

«The deceased oldest of the True Dragons, Veldanava, is the only other male of the 4 True Dragons. He died after the birth of his daughter. I have mentioned this before Master. He is also the creator of the world»

'Sorry sorry, I wasn't listening', Rimuru said mentally, though not hearing the last bit. He swore he heard a sigh from "Raphael" but ignored it for the now more important matter. 'He's missing his brother huh?! I guess I would be sad too if my family member died'