Afterward.
We loaded the students onto the airship
It was a little bittersweet, but survival training was officially over.
He was taking requests and working out territorial divisions.
From now on, this island would serve as a secret base for the mysterious airship and a training ground for the students — a literal "hellish amusement park."
We'd also look into allowing escorted visits by civilians down the road.
And then — we decided to hear the story of what Diablo and the others had been up to inside the ship.
"This is some kind of mistake, I tell you!"
Eujeolas was wailing and screaming as
On closer inspection, it wasn't actually a log — it was a person who'd been turned into a magic tree.
"What's this?"
"Ah! This piece of trash had infiltrated the NNU Magic Science Research Academy, so I disposed of him. As per your orders, I did not take his life."
Diablo answered with supreme confidence.
He certainly hadn't killed him, but what exactly did he plan to do with this thing…?
"Kufufufufu. After the interrogation, I thought we could have him manage the Trent district in the labyrinth."
"Wouldn't
"Hmm? Then shall we present him as a gift from Lord Rimuru?"
"I'd hate that! That's not just bad taste — it's beyond bad taste! It'd call my sense of aesthetics into question!"
"You're right. My apologies. Shall I burn him, then?"
"Mm, yeah…"
As Diablo and I chatted back and forth like a comedy duo, the log — no, Goldma, started shedding little tears.
I was starting to feel a tiny bit sorry for him.
But from what I'd heard, he'd been the single biggest obstacle to my academy plans. I couldn't very well just let him off the hook.
There was no reason to.
"Fine. Put him on display as a warning to other idiots, and once he's endured a hundred years of life as a tree, he can go free. If his brain's intact, rehabilitation should be possible. Introspection is important, after all."
"As expected of Lord Rimuru! You overflow with compassion!"
Really? I dunno… that sounded pretty harsh to me.
The punishment hit every note — agonizing pain without death, no fainting, no madness. Dying might honestly be the merciful option. But enduring a hundred years of this would forge his spirit something fierce.
Depending on how he behaved by the end, maybe I'd even offer him a job in the Monster Town.
It was grotesque, sure, but it'd make for an interesting experiment.
Then there was the other one.
Eujeolas, who'd been sniveling and weeping this whole time…
Turning him into a magic tree would almost certainly break his mind.
Hmm. True to his nature as a petty schemer, he hadn't committed any one gravely serious crime. But he'd actively meddled with my academy plans and pushed that nonsensical caste system — clear hostile action against me.
"What do we do with this one?"
"Shall I kill him?"
Souei's response was instant.
Diablo looked at him, startled — as if to say, "Really? You're okay with that?"
Come to think of it — wait. The caste system. That reminded me.
"That's right! He's obsessed with status, so let's strip him of his rank and make him a criminal slave."
"A sound idea. Perhaps labyrinth cleaning duty?"
"Kufufufufu. With the bracelet on, he won't have to worry about dying, after all."
That'd be a pretty brutal punishment.
The bracelet meant no matter how many times he died, he'd come back to life.
Labyrinth cleaning was genuinely life-threatening.
Some areas were handled by the monsters, but others required a human touch.
Treyni and the other labyrinth managers visited those areas regularly, but they also needed grunt labor.
Naturally, the danger was enormous.
He could be killed by monsters over and over, so the job fell to criminal slaves.
It was the most hated job in Monster Town.
But a conversation like this was absolutely not something I could have in front of the students.
The negative influence would be off the charts.
With those thoughts running through my head, I finalized the punishments for Goldma and Eujeolas.
Next came Magnus, Rosalie, and Irina.
The moment Irina saw my face, she spat: "Hah — kill me!"
Oh! Now there's a real tough cookie!
"Kufufufufu. Then, if you'll allow me—"
I hastily stopped Diablo from making a move.
You absolutely must not kill a tough cookie.
That was the rule.
"Look, I understand you hate me. But here's the thing — that's a grudge based on a misunderstanding. When a war breaks out and your country is invaded, refusing to resist is something a ruler can never, ever permit. You can't have a nation without protecting your people's safety and property. If ordinary citizens want to advocate pacifism, that's their prerogative. But if a leader starts spouting that kind of nonsense, the entire country collapses. You get that, right?"
"Yes… I understand that I'm in the wrong. But! I have no choice but to resent you—"
Well, it was the kind of situation where resentment was inevitable. She probably didn't expect her grudge to ever be resolved, and in the worst case, she'd be perfectly content dying at my hands.
What a pain.
"So, who's this compatriot you mentioned? During the war with the Empire, I revived as many soldiers as I could, you know."
The reactions from the three of them weren't just surprised — they were utterly stunned.
It seemed this was the first they'd heard of it.
"Hey, hey. Didn't you talk to the revived soldiers?"
"W-well, I heard, but I couldn't believe it. In the extreme conditions of the battlefield, I thought it might have been mass hypnosis or something…"
"Exactly. It's not something one can easily believe…"
Magnus and Rosalie shook their heads in disbelief.
Hmm. Fair enough.
But it was the truth.
"
"Stoooooop!"
Irina suddenly locked eyes with me and started rattling off names — presumably answering my question.
Every name she mentioned was one I recognized.
I cut her off and delivered the facts concisely.
"They're alive, you know."
Irina glared at me as if to say, What nonsense — don't think you can fool me!
But it was the truth…
"Anyway, haven't those guys even contacted any of their acquaintances?"
"That would be because — Lord Rimuru…"
Souei had the full picture.
Shinji, Mark, and Shin had defected from the Empire and sought asylum. That was why they couldn't reach out on their own.
And on top of that— "They seem to be entirely absorbed in their research and rarely leave the country. For exercise, they occasionally tackle the labyrinth as a way to relieve stress, apparently."
It sounded like the kind of situation where you could practically hear
Come to think of it, Ramiris and Veldora had been suspiciously well-behaved lately. I'd worried they were plotting something, but it turned out they'd just been consumed by their research.
"Kufufufufu. Speaking of which, there was a request for additional personnel. Among the documents piling up in
Diablo, ever sharp-eyed, had apparently gone through the paperwork addressed to Benimaru without anyone asking.
I actually knew about that report myself.
But there'd been nobody available to fill the role, so I'd let it sit.
Someone with sufficient knowledge who could withstand high concentrations of magicules.
That was the profile of the perfect candidate.
Hmm. Personnel, huh…
"Irina. If you can't believe me, I can arrange for you to meet them."
"What!?"
"But—!"
I could feel Irina tense up.
I grinned and continued.
"You'll also be working there as a researcher. If you decline this offer, a hundred-year prison sentence would be the appropriate punishment. Of course, you wouldn't be able to verify whether I'm telling the truth, and even if I am, you'd never get to see them. It's up to you — choose whatever you like."
Irina's face twisted with anguish.
But she seemed to make up her mind surprisingly quickly.
"Either way, being able to research beats a prison sentence. Even if you're lying, I choose to work there. And… Lord Rimuru, you protected our students, so I want to believe you're not the kind of Demon Lord who would lie and toy with people's hearts—"
Whether those words came from the bottom of her heart or not, Irina accepted my offer.
Just one more push.
"Of course. Irina-kun was kind enough to tell me her plans straightforwardly. Spilled everything, really. That merit alone deserves recognition, wouldn't you say?"
I nodded with a devilish grin.
"Hey! Please don't bring that up!"
Irina turned beet red, all the way to her ears, and looked down.
"Fufufufu. Irina-kun. For me, manipulating people's hearts without even needing to lie is child's play. I'm half-tempted to casually mention this to Shinji and the others. It'd be perfect drinking conversation. So, you see, it can't be helped, right?"
"Ahhhhhh—!!"
Irina was mortified at the very thought, writhing in embarrassment.
"I-I'll pledge my loyalty, so could you please keep that matter… confidential…?"
"I'll think about it!"
I declared victory and nodded with an imperious air.
Then Magnus, who'd been listening to my back-and-forth with Irina, spoke up.
"Satoru-chan — no, Lord Rimuru, the Great Demon Lord! I — I don't care what happens to me. But could you please pardon Rosalie's crimes?"
"Lord Magnus!?"
"I'm fully aware this is a lot to ask. But Rosalie only followed my orders. At the very least, please allow me to bear her punishment in her stead…"
I'd written him off as nothing but a flashy pretty boy, but Magnus actually had some backbone.
He was royalty, after all.
I didn't want to punish them arbitrarily and earn needless resentment. It could easily become an international incident, and running roughshod over people just because I could wasn't my style.
What to do…
While I was mulling it over, I heard a knock at the door.
Two presences.
That had to be them.
I'd been expecting them — or rather, hoping they'd come.
Perfect. Now I had a way to settle this.
"Come in."
I gave permission before Souei could even stand.
The two who entered were, as expected, Julius and Kurma.
I'd instructed the teachers to try to stop them if they attempted to come, so the fact that they'd made it here meant the students had cooperated with them.
I became aware of a small smile forming at the corners of my mouth.
They knew I was the Great Demon Lord, and they still came to negotiate face-to-face.
Not only that — they'd enlisted the students to help, without fear of earning my displeasure.
That takes guts. And I genuinely thought so.
"Mr. Satoru — Lord Rimuru! Please forgive Magnus!"
The moment Kurma entered the room, he bowed ninety degrees and said that.
Julius followed.
"Magnus is our friend. We failed to notice his troubles, and he couldn't confide in us. Same goes for me — we never spoke from the heart. No, it's not that we chose not to; we simply couldn't. But now, we want to open up more. We want to bare our true feelings and truly connect! So please, give us that chance!"
Julius poured out his feelings, then bowed to me just as Kurma had.
This worked out beautifully.
Now I had my reason to forgive them.
"Very well. In that case, I'll hold all three of you jointly responsible."
At my words, Julius, Kurma, and Magnus all looked up at once.
Rosalie was also staring at me, bewildered.
"Help each other out, and if someone's about to go off the rails, pull them back. As long as you're my students, that's all I ask. When students cause trouble, their teachers share the blame — so I'll let it slide this time."
Diablo gracefully granted his forgiveness, sipping his tea.
Souei had already prepared a fresh cup for me.
Neither of them objected to my decision.
"Th-then… you'll forgive us…?"
Rosalie asked timidly.
It wasn't me who answered — it was Diablo.
"Kufufufufu. Listen carefully. If Lord Rimuru says he forgives you, all sins are forgiven. He said he's turning a blind eye, which means you've all been let off the hook this time. There won't be a next, so keep that in mind."
Souei added: "That's right. Ultimately, the problem lay with the academy side. You were, in a sense, victims. Besides, the plan to cultivate talent and funnel them into key positions was rather clever. That alone wouldn't constitute any crime."
He was right.
At the end of the day, the brainwashing-style education of the students was unacceptable, but everything else was hardly a major offense.
"Well, that's the long and short of it. I told Irina the same thing — conflicts between nations look different depending on which side you belong to. History is the same way; writing it to favor your own country is, to some extent, unavoidable. That's exactly why, when studying history, you need to examine multiple nations' accounts simultaneously. Hear both sides and judge fairly. Though I suppose it might lack credibility, coming from a Demon Lord."
And with that, I wrapped things up.
I was about to dismiss Magnus and the others when I caught sight of the log lying at my feet.
"Oh, right. Julius-kun — you were shouting that you hated me, weren't you?"
"Oh?"
"…?"
My murmur drew a reaction from Diablo, and Souei's brow twitched.
"A-ah, well… that was…"
Beads of sweat appeared on Julius's composed face as he desperately searched for words.
Fufufu.
I'd let that comment slide at the time, but it had stung a little.
"I have to admit, even I was a bit hurt being told that to my face."
"That was merely a figure of speech…"
Julius's eyes were brimming with tears.
Fine, I'd let him off here.
"Just kidding. I'll let it wash away, but there's one condition."
"A condition?"
"Mm-hm. Take care of this."
I pointed at the log.
Julius made a face but agreed without protest.
"Since it's joint responsibility, each academy will take turns housing it. It'll serve as punishment for you lot, and rotating it yearly keeps things fair. If any students look like they're about to do something stupid, show them this and tell them to reflect. Two birds with one stone, right?"
The three of them plus Rosalie looked absolutely miserable.
Seeing that, I was satisfied.
I'd gotten rid of the item I'd been struggling to dispose of and handed down punishment to Magnus and the gang.
Everything was coming up Milhouse.
Oh, and the reformist faction of the so-called "Human Liberation Alliance" — their ideology was pretty radical, so I'd ordered the arrest of all of them.
Souei's subordinates had already made arrangements and would be capturing them all shortly.
I'd hand them over to Laplace as a valuable labor force.
I was sure they'd perform admirably.
And so, without any of it being part of my original plan, the great cleanup of the academy and the removal of unstable elements were complete.
—— Later.
The students in Julius's, Magnus's, and Kurma's graduating class would go down in legend as the heroes who were personally treated to a home-cooked meal by the Great Demon Lord.
Among them, some — like Marcia — would become genuine heroes, even being hailed as the founders of entirely new magical systems.
My escape had triggered a whole avalanche of these legends, but that's another story entirely.
◇◇◇ Back in the Monster Nation.
My main body — Rimuru — had been unceremoniously split clean in two.
Since I was a slime, it was really just two smaller versions of me… but even so, when you think of it as your own body, it hits different.
"Th-this is… well, you see…"
"It wasn't my fault!
The fact that
But more than that, the revelation that my stubbornly resilient main body had been torn in half left me truly shaken.
These two must never be angered.
That was the moment I swore it anew.
Incidentally, I absorbed the two mini-Rimurus back into myself and was restored to normal.
Since Shuna and Shion looked a bit forlorn afterward, I thought I'd make them dolls as gifts next time.
◆◆◆ At the forum held in Ingracia Academy City — "The Advancement of Magic and Science, Eighth Annual" — Mai delivered a splendid presentation.
She had spent ten years stabilizing the Gate to Another World.
As I listened to her lecture, the thought that "maybe next time we could all go visit another world together for fun" crossed my mind — but that's between you and me.
To be continued?