"...D-Demi-God...?"
[Dwelling of Spirits], at its core.
This place had already been thrown into an uproar by the enormous number of spirits Adelio had called in, so it was only natural, perhaps, that it would erupt once again.
"That thing just now was human? And a [Hero] just like you?"
Chronoa's [Thought Body], the strongest [Hero].
True to the name of strongest, her [Thought Body] had reached the realm of [Half-God], a level no one else in history had ever attained, and even to Ramiris, who had met nearly every [Hero], it felt especially alien.
"...Chronoa."
"...So she really was your teacher..."
Ria and Shizue, who already knew about Chronoa, needed no further explanation.
"Huh."
"...That lady just now was Miss Shizu's teacher...?"
The same went for Fadaa and the children, who knew nothing at all.
"...Since this concerns Chronoa, I can't explain everything here."
Even Adelio could not speak lightly about Chronoa's regression.
To begin with, Chronoa herself had asked him not to, and more than that, Luminous hated the idea of her secrets being exposed to others.
At most, all he could explain in this situation was that the [Thought Body] that had just appeared was a [Hero] who had once led the [Hero Party], and that she had been Shizue's teacher.
In other words, it was impossible to explain everything here and now.
...However—
"But if it were somewhere else... somewhere special... I might be able to tell you a little."
—if it was somewhere other than here, that was a different story.
'Originally, I was planning to head to Sarion after the children finished their contracts... but I guess I'll have to change the schedule. That girl is there too, after all.'
Even if that meant enduring the complaints of the two High Elves who would follow later,
there was one place that could clear up their questions at once—and the place where Luminous had sealed Chronoa's body.
"Ruberios, where the headquarters of the Western Holy Church stands."
That place alone could answer their questions.
...
And so, with their choices narrowed, the women split into three decisions.
"...Ruberios, huh? Fine by me."
"Yes. Hinata is there... so I think it would be all right to go right now."
Ria, who wanted to know the details of Chronoa's secret, and Shizue, who wished to see her again, naturally volunteered to go to Ruberios.
"...So until I can control my magicules perfectly, it's still too soon...?"
Rimuru, who was better off not learning about Chronoa yet, was persuaded by Adelio to remain in Ingrassia with the young disciples.
And lastly, Ramiris—
"Why can't you tell us here?! Don't let only you all know! I want to know too!!"
—had already repeated the same protest more than ten times, doing nothing but cling to Adelio's nose.
"..."
Unlike Rimuru, Ramiris had no deep connection to Chronoa, and there was no real downside to her learning about her. But the ruler of Ruberios was Luminous, which was exactly why Ramiris could not go there.
"...I've told you over and over, Ramiris. You're in no position to go into Valentine territory."
Squeeze!
Letting out a sigh as he looked at Ramiris gripping his nose, Adelio closed his eyes as if he had expected this all along.
'Ria and Shizue are one thing, since Luminous already knows about their connection to Chronoa. But Ramiris is a fellow Demon Lord. Of course she'd be treated as a threat.'
Luminous herself knew perfectly well how weak Ramiris was now, so she probably would not bother stopping her. But her subordinates, who were not part of her inner circle, would see Ramiris as a monster comparable to their master, which could stir up needless trouble.
After all, ordinary subordinates who saw even Clayman as dangerous would never fail to be wary of Ramiris, who had once been spoken of in the same breath as Guy and Milim.
"If you don't want to get dragged into pointless trouble, it'd be better for you to stay behind like Rimuru. For your own sake too."
"No! If you leave this time, you won't show up again for months! Besides, even if some weird problem does happen, the power of this great [Spirit Queen] would be more than enough to handle it!"
But Ramiris paid no attention to Adelio's attempt to persuade her. She shot back immediately and tugged even harder at the bridge of his nose.
Just like a Pixie who could never let go once she found something interesting, she showed no sign of giving up.
'...Can't be helped.'
As one of Ramiris's few close friends, Adelio knew all too well that once she started whining, it was never resolved easily. He let out another sigh and slowly opened his eyes.
"And as for Valentine, one hit from my ultimate move would—"
"If you promise to forget about this for now and wait quietly until we meet again, I'll give you a special present instead."
"—...A-a present?"
Ramiris, who had been talking nonstop, flinched at the word present and faltered.
"...What kind of present?"
Like a child whose attention had been stolen by a toy, Ramiris's eyes quickly filled with expectation as she bit down on the bait Adelio had thrown her.
Knowing perfectly well she would react that way, Adelio recalled the [Elemental Colossus] she had completed and slowly opened his mouth.
"A guardian stronger than the [Elemental Colossus] you made—and a servant worthy of the name Demon Lord."
The only problem was that it belonged to that bunch of eccentrics called Black...
Swallowing the rest of that thought, Adelio finally pulled out the demonic steel from his subspace and began inscribing a familiar summoning circle into it.
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