〆 𝖆 𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖒𝖎𝖘𝖊𝖉 𝖘𝖑𝖎𝖒𝖊 𝖎𝖓 𝖓𝖊𝖛𝖊𝖗𝖑𝖆𝖓𝖉 〆 ᵗᵖⁿ ⁺ ᵗᵗⁱᵍʳᵃᵃˢ

XIV. Final Decision - An End

The two demons on guard at the gate to the section containing the headquarters building stared blankly ahead, watching for any sign of trouble. Another demon came rushing towards them from the direction of the gate to one of the plantations, waving its tentacle-like arms about frantically.

"Guards! We need help!" it shouted.

"What is it?" the first guard asked, scanning the area for anything nearby causing the alarm.

"Outsiders have infiltrated the plantations, including that thing that attacked us last time! They're making mincemeat out of us! We need all the help we can get!"

"What about the head?" the second one asked. "He's with the others, interrogating that... thing we caught earlier."

"I'll inform him what's going on, but hurry! They need every able-bodied soldier!"

The guards nodded, and raced past him, heading down the road that would eventually connect them to the enclosed areas of the five plantations. As they ran, one of the guards couldn't help wondering; 'Mincemeat?'

As the guards disappeared into the distance, the third demon smiled. He then walked in the direction of the headquarters' building entrance, noting that there were no longer guards outside the doors. As he neared it, he made out the brief sounds of a battle going on inside. A dark cloud formed around him for a few seconds before vanishing, leaving behind Rimuru in his usual blue-haired, human form.

He had absorbed the body of one the demons they had disposed of at the nearest plantation, as he thought that posing as one of them might come in handy. Killing the two might have been simpler, but he expected the two to gather additional help along the way, not that it would do them any good. Easier to have them go to his people rather than take the trouble to hunt them down later.

Curious as to Souei's progress, he walked in while keeping his senses alert for any sign of attack. He found there was no need for concern. The floor of the entrance room was covered in bloody demon' body-parts. The ever stoic Souei greeted him with a bow.

Rimuru cocked an eyebrow at him. "Finished cleaning house, Souei?" he asked, indicating the demon corpses surrounding them.

Souei gave a simple nod, and reported. "All demons have been neutralised."

"What about the humans here?"

"They're all upstairs in the human's private quarters. When I broke out and attacked the demon leader and his underlings, an alarm sounded. I assume there must be some sort of protocol where if the girls hear the alarm, they must return to their quarters and wait there till it's safe."

Rimuru nodded, and walked on. "Well, let's see if we can convince these girls to leave with us then."

Souei followed his master, as the two of them walked up several flights of steps until they reached the top floor, sealed off by a single locked and bolted iron door. The look of it suggested that no human could get past it, but fortunately, Rimuru was no longer human. He rose up his hand, and shot a blast of lightning that struck the door, blasting it off its hinges.

"Not very subtle, my lord," Souei said with a touch of amusement, which was a rarity for him.

"There's a time for subtlety, and a time for action," replied the former human. "These people fear the demons for their strength. We're stronger. Might as well make that point so no one can miss it. Besides, reinforcements for the demons could show up any minute."

Souei nodded in agreement, and followed Rimuru as he walked on. The now empty doorway led to a long hallway filled with doors on each side. As they walked in, the doors all burst open, and a large number of girls of various ages came rushing out. Some were as young as 12 years old, and others were in their 20s, like Krone, but each of them looked ready to fight. Rimuru recalled Krone saying that these girls were taught a variety of skills, including combat, so he guessed these girls were also trained to respond to an attack on their HQ, which undoubtedly would entail defending the place.