The Reincarnations of Veldanava

Raphael²

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm Demon Lord Rimuru. I'm glad you have answered my invitation and gathered here. I have no intention of being hostile toward humans. I'm hoping to build a nation where everyone can live in harmony."

Rimuru paused a bit, gauging the reactions of the people. "I know that you can't build trust overnight. Some of you are still wary of me. It's natural, I'm a Demon Lord after all."

"To the nobles here: when you return to your homelands, I want you to be honest when telling what happens here with your countrymen."

"I have no intention to wage war just because someone is unwilling to join hands with us. However, we will not show any mercy if you try to push unequal treatment on us or try to eradicate us just because we are monsters."

It wasn't that much of a threat but rather a reminder of the line that must not be crossed. "Sleeping dragons dwell in Tempest. It would be best for everyone to let them lie."

The Storm Dragon was here. The Kingdom of Falmuth had already set an example of what would happen if anyone tried to attack this town, and other countries would learn from their mistake to avoid such fate.

"Dragons? As in multiple of them?"

"You heard it, too, right?"

"It might be a mistake on his part, but this is too important of an event to make such a mistake."

"What if it's true? What if this nation really has more than one dragon?"

"As if the evil dragon by itself isn't enough. How absurd."

"Agreed, Demon Lord Rimuru is an absurd man."

Whisperings could be heard from the crowd, wondering about the other dragon Rimuru mentioned. Rimuru just wanted to give them another reason to not invade Tempest.

In truth, that dragon was Rimuru himself. He had become a dragonoid, some of his subordinates knew it, but the public only knew Rimuru as a slime who rose to the Demon Lord rank.

"To all the merchants, adventurers and regular peasantry gathered here: I swear to not lay a hand on any of you. My nation is in need of workers. If you seek work, I would like you to consider moving here."

"Going forward, our nation is planning a multitude of events. The Founder's Festival starting today is only the beginning of that. I hope all of you will enjoy the festival!"

The crowd soared in excitement as Rimuru finished his speech.

"Rimuru-sama!" Masayuki chanted along with the crowd as if he was a boy cheering for his favorite idol in the front row of the concert.

"Aren't you too enthusiastic about this? Where is your dignity as a hero, Masayuki?" Guy teased him.

"I agree with Mister Rouge," Jiwu, Masayuki's party member, said. "You never cheered for an enemy before, but I believe there is a reason, right?"

Masayuki sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, it's because—"

"I think the answer is crystal clear, Jiwu," said Bernie, another teammate of Masayuki. "That Rimuru took glances in this direction as if trying to gauge our strength, so Sir Masayuki took advantage of the situation."

"You mean...!" Jiwu's face shifted into one of surprise.

"That's right! Sir Masayuki only did what he did just to give Demon Lord Rimuru a false sense of security, so it would be easier to catch him off guard."

"As expect from Sir Masayuki!"

Meanwhile, Masayuki was amazed, not knowing how they got to that conclusion in the first place.