Just as the party exited the Labyrinth area, a man flickered into existence in front of them. He had blue hair tied in a ponytail, calm black eyes, and a curved horn protruding from his forehead. He stood in front of them calmly and respectfully, and gave them a bow.
"I am Souei. Lord Rimuru has asked me to act as your guide during your stay. If you require anything, speak, and I will see it done," he said directly and calmly, almost bordering on indifferent.
Aaric raised an eyebrow at the sudden greeting but nodded after a second. 'Now that I think about it, he is like an ideal guide,' Aaric thought.
"Thank you, Souei. I am Aaric. Do you have any recommendations for places to visit?" Aaric asked. Luna and Daphne shrugged.
"Yes, I see you are exploring the city and Labyrinth at your own pace, so I will go broader in for the options," Souei started with a nod.
"El Dorado... it's a city of brilliance where everything feels deliberate. Leon Cromwell rules there, and every stone in the city is placed according to his plan. If you want refinement, that's where you'll find it," Souei said, gesturing southwest.
"To the east lies the Beast Kingdom of Eurazania, where strength and tradition define daily life. The Ice Continent has a beauty of its own; it is harsh but quiet in the best way," Souei added with a shrug.
"And then there is the central world: mostly humans, crowded cities, old kingdoms, and interesting customs. There you can find a little bit of everything," Souei finished.
Aaric nodded and glanced at Luna and Daphne. Both shrugged and left the decision to Aaric.
"There are different realms here as well, right?" Aaric asked, and Souei nodded.
"Yes, the daemon realm, the spirit realm, the elemental realms," Souei counted some of them and glanced at Aaric.
"Is there a way to visit the Daemon realm?" Aaric asked Souei. Luna and Daphne also seemed interested in that realm.
"Give me a moment," Souei said and flickered away.
"He is moving through the shadows, as if every shadow in this world had a connected dimension," Daphne commented.
"Yes, this world has magic in every aspect of it," Aaric said, gesturing around him. He waved his hand and the air shimmered with blue particles, showing the magical energy flowing in the air.
"There is a way. I apologize if you find it annoying," Souei said with genuine guilt in his eyes as he flickered in front of them again.
"Lord Rimuru has commanded me to help his new friends and I will not disappoint," came a smooth voice beside Souei, as Diablo appeared beside him with a laugh.
"Hmm?" Diablo tilted his head as he saw Aaric and the group. "How fascinating," he muttered.
He leaned in towards Aaric and started examining him from every angle.
"You are different. I can not gauge the strength of any of you. And this magic... it's golden," Diablo started muttering to himself.
Souei sighed and held Diablo by the collar, and pried him away from Aaric.
"You step out of line again, and I will tell Lord Rimuru," Souei said in his usual bored tone.
"But—they... As expected of Lord Rimuru, only he can have such fascinating friends," Diablo started to argue but nodded with a smile on his face.
"He did warn us," Luna giggled and hugged Aaric's arm.
"Please, follow me. I will open a rift to the daemon realm and serve as your guide," Diablo said with a laugh and a bow.
"Can you just give me a sense of the energy of the place?" Daphne asked Diablo.
Diablo scratched his head but then nodded with a shrug, and did as was told.
Daphne sensed the energy and moved her hand in an arc, forming a portal beside them.
"Thank you for your help, we can go on from here," she said and held Aaric's hand with a smirk as they moved towards the portal.
"Please take this thread with you. Say my name if you wish to communicate with me. I will not be able to see or hear anything you do not wish me to," Souei said and handed Aaric a thread.
Aaric shrugged and tied the thread on his wrist before thanking Diablo and Souei, and entering the portal with Luna and Daphne.
They saw a sky full of violet-black clouds in a realm of demonic and chaotic energy as they entered the portal.
Aaric looked around and saw he was standing in a ruin made of black stone.
"How are you going to thank me for saving you?" Daphne asked with a giggle as she closed the portal behind her.
Aaric went up to Daphne and held her tightly by the waist before giving her a deep and passionate kiss.
Their tongues intertwined as Aaric placed one hand behind her neck and moved his fingers in a circle, and his other hand was placed on her waist, holding her firmly.
Daphne became breathless after Aaric broke the kiss, but not from a lack of oxygen.
"Is that thanks enough?" Aaric asked.
Daphne just held him closer. "No... but I will manage for now," she said, stealing more kisses from him.
Meanwhile, with Souei and Diablo,
Souei let out a deep sigh and glared at Diablo, who was still in his own world and inspecting the place where Daphne had created the portal.
"Come on, Diablo, we should tell Lord Rimuru of the great job you have done," Souei said with a twitching lip, still glaring.
"Yes, we did as he told, and I did not even need to part with them for long. I do regret not getting an opportunity to see their magic further, but I can just ask our Lord how it works," Diablo said with a laugh and a smug expression.
"You did what?" Rimuru asked in utter shock as a kneeling Souei told him what had happened, with a still smug Diablo beside him.
"We did as you told, My Lord, and with pure efficiency," Diablo said, oblivious to the depressed face of Rimuru and the darkening smile of Shuna, who was standing behind Rimuru.
"How could I have been so shortsighted? I should have sent Testarossa or literally any other deemon," Rimuru started muttering to himself and stared drawing circles on the ground.
"Sir Diablo," Shuna said in a sweet voice.
Diablo tilted his head at her, glancing at the depressed Rimuru.
"Do you think leaving Lord Rimuru's friends alone in a completely different dimension is efficient?" she asked in her sweet tone, but her eyes were devoid of any emotion.
"They told me I do not need to go with them," Diablo said in confusion.
"Because you acted like a creep, you fool!" Rimuru shouted, getting up and pointing at Diablo.
Diablo took half a step back and put a hand on his chest as if he was hurt. "My Lord?" he asked in a shaky voice.
"Sit," Rimuru commanded, and Diablo immediately sat in a dogeza position.
"Why are you such a weirdo? Do you know what personal space is? How will I look them in the eye and talk to them after what you did?" Rimuru started lecturing Diablo, who got more and more depressed at every word and clutched his chest tighter as if every word Rimuru spoke was like a dagger piercing his heart.
Shion and Benimaru entered the room and heard the lecture as it was going on.
"I am clearly the better secretary, so he should have sent me," Shion said smugly as Benimaru looked at her with a neutral expression and shook his head.
After the lecture was over, Rimuru stood there huffing for air, even though he did not need to breathe.
While Diablo lay sprawled on the ground with sunken cheeks and dead eyes looking at the sky.
"Should I go as a guide for your new friends?" Shuna asked, and Benimaru offered himself as well.
"No, they can handle themselves," Rimuru said, shaking his head.
Diablo gritted his teeth and started getting up from the ground with effort; his form still seemed skeletal, though.
"Don't follow me for at least two days," Rimuru ordered and walked away with the others.
Behind Rimuru, a stone statue could be seen with a horrified expression and a hand outstretched, reaching for his Lord.
A/n: Please leave your thought and reviews.
Power stones, leave.now.please.Because I Love you.