4. Bullying the emperor and giving the demon headaches

A hero and a demon. These two had fought many times and their fighting didn't seem to come to an end any time soon. This whole thing started when the hero set out in order to slay the evil demon who he considered as the biggest threat to the world. They fought but no winner was decided. They fought again and again and always ended in a draw. After some time, they took a liking to each other. They developed some kind of friendship. But neitherless, they weren't friends. They were friendly rivals. The difference is big between those two terms. What kept this friendly relationship ongoing was simply their fights which both enjoyed a lot.

The demon, considered as the strongest, was able to even surpass the true dragons which were deemed unbeatable. Veldanava of course was out of question. The demon had, in the past, challenged the first true dragon and suffered an instant defeat. Now that Veldanava has died, the only one able to fight him on par was Velzard, the second true dragon, or so he thought. The appearance of the hero, who managed to draw with him, brought some excitement to his life. Being the strongest without a rival was boring, and this hero was able to rival him.

The hero on the other hand was considered the strongest hero, no equals among humans. After fighting so many mindless beasts and semi strong monsters, he was bored. He even forgot the excitement coming with a good fight. But then he met this demon he couldn't beat. He didn't lose, but he didn't win either. No matter how often they fought, it always ended in a draw. This demon managed to light the flames of excitement in him, brought joy in his life. It didn't even matter to him if he was evil or not. He had already forgotten that he originally wanted to slay him. Now, he just enjoyed these fights and someday wanted to end this series of draws and win.

These two were Guy Crimson and Rudra. Both of them were pretty similar. Both were very competitive. They even decided to turn this into a game. Guy would recruit so-called demon lords, and Rudra had his empire. Last time they fought, Guy said Rudra would become weak due to him still being a human. He suggested they get pawns and let them fight against each other, but that's humiliating for Rudra. And today, he came to show Guy that he is as strong as ever and even beat him. That was his aim for his sudden appearance in the Palace of White Ice.

'Just wait Guy, today I'll beat you and your pawns.'

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Unlike Rudra and Guy Crimson, there was someone who was rather exasperated about the sudden turn of the events. He had a perfect poker face, but inside he was having troubles in deciding what to do and how it has come to this.

'I just wanted to save Milim and have some fun, and now this bastard shows up. I had enough of this Rudra and Michael thing in the original time-line, and now I have to deal with it all over again. Maybe I should just beat him to pulp and make sure he decides to give up his game with Guy? Or kill him? No no Velgrynd would hunt me down for sure if I would do that. Ahh, this Hero is such a pain.'

<< Master, it seems like you really insist on becoming the villain? >>

>> Ah no Ciel, but he made us so many problems and i don't know what to do. I don't know how it would affect the timeline if I do something against him and waiting for him to attack Tempest in the future also isn't really an option either. What do you think, what should I do? <<

<<Master, alone that you came here to be one of the ancient demon lords will change the time-line drastically. No matter what you do, it won't affect the original time-line, so you can act as you wish. >>

>> Hmm, yes you're right. I don't even know why I made such a fuss about it. Let's have fun, Ciel. <<

<< Yes master >>

"Ehmm, Rimuru-sama, I'm alright, you can put me down now."

'Oh crap, I forgot I was carrying her. Is she blushing, or am I seeing things?'

<< Master, your hand... >>

Rimuru, who had caught Rain as a reflex, didn't realize that his left hand was placed on a spot which could even make one of the Primordial demons flustered. Realizing this, he quickly let go of her and turned his head away to hide his embarrassment.

"T-thank you R-rimuru-sama."

'Is she angry? Of course, she is, she is even stuttering. I hope she won't hold a grudge against me for that.'

<< Sigh...Master is as dense as ever... >>

>> Dense? Oi, if you have something to say say it Ciel, what do you mean dense? <<

<< Sigh.. >>

'Ciel seems disappointed in me. What did she mean? Anyway, I have other things to worry about now.'

As Rimuru was thinking about this, both Rudra and Velgrynd, in her human form, had landed on the balcony and were now approaching them.

"Guy, you know why I'm here. Today is the day I'll win for sure, no draws anymore. Where do you want to fight? I wouldn't want to accidentally destroy your castle."

"Get lost Rudra, as much as I would want to fight you right now, I have a guest. You should have told me in advance."

"Guest? Another one of your pawns? Doesn't matter, I'll beat you both and show you who the real weakling is."

"He isn't a demon lord. He just helped us to calm down Milim. If you want to fight him, you'll have to ask yourself."

Guy was not sure what to think about this Rimuru who came out of nowhere. He couldn't read him or his strength at all.

'I hope Rudra fights Rimuru, that way I can at least see what he's capable of. Maybe he is even worthy to join our group?'

Rimuru, who was standing as still as possible to go unnoticed, cursed at Guy.

'I bet he just wants to know how strong I am. And maybe I could get this Rudra back for this whole stupid game he set off with Guy. Because of him, all I did was fighting war after war. Yes, that way, I'm sure I would be accepted as a demon lord and get back at him.'

"Huh? Guy-san, this Blondie doesn't seem strong at all. Are you sure I should fight him?"

"YOU INSOLENT BRAT, WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE TO INSULT RUDRA."

Velgrynd, who was standing silently next to Rudra, was enraged at this blue-haired stranger who dared to insult Rudra.

"But he doesn't seem that strong to me? Did I say something wro-"

Before Rimuru could finish, Velgrynd rushed to him and started to attack him. Rimuru, knowing it would come to this, just dodged every punch and kick she threw. Not lifting a hand, he easily avoided every punch and kick she delivered effortlessly.

'Why can't I hit him, why can't I hit him? Why isn't he attacking? Is he keeping an act? Yeah that must be. I'm sure after some time he'll be exhausted, and I'll get him.'

After 5 minutes of constantly attacking, Velgrynd was at her wits end. This stranger was effortlessly dodging her every attack with minimal movements, without fighting back.

'Is he looking down on me?'

Enraged by this realization, she once again attacked.

"Do we really have to do this Velgrynd-san?"

"Shut your mouth, I'm going to make you pay for what you said!"

In her anger, Velgrynd became careless and lost her momentum for a second after Rimuru successfully dodged a kick of hers. Before she knew, she slipped and was about to crash into him. But to her surprise, the crash never came. She suddenly realized that Rimuru has caught her and was princess-carrying her.

"You shouldn't act out of anger Velgrynd-san, you look better when you smile."

Velgrynd, totally red on her face despite being in her human form, suddenly felt all her anger being swept away. But after realizing her current situation and seeing her sister's mocking face, she became all flustered and shy.

"Let go off me, what do you think you're doing?!"

Rimuru, realizing what he was doing, quickly let her go, resulting in her crashing down to the floor bottom first.

"Hmpf, is this how you treat a lady?"

"Hehehe I'm sorry."

"Hey, don't forget about me. I'm your opponent as of now."

Rudra, at first dumbfounded at the events before him, took out his sword and dashed towards Rimuru. But before he could land a blow, Rimuru casually lifted his arm and flicked his finger against his sword, resulting in Rudras sword being shattered to pieces.

"H-how?! H-how did you do that?!"

"Oh I'm sorry I broke your toy Blondie. I just wanted to parry, I swear. I didn't think you would attack me with a toy sword."

"T-t-toy sword?"

Rudras sword was in reality mythical grade and embedded with holy magic. It was in no way weak and was able to match Guy's own sword during their fights. And Rimuru just casually broke it with a flick of his finger. The reaction of the audience was all the same. They were all dumbfounded at the display of power Rimuru just showed. They guessed that he was probably strong, but not to this extent.

"I-i see, I guess I need a stronger sword to fight you. I'll return once I have one at disposal. We shall take our leave now."

"What do you mean? We could do a fist fight, right? I could lend you a sword if you want?"

"N-n-no I h-have some t-things to do b-back in the empire. Let's go Velgrynd, we'll visit another time."

Velgrynd, after her crash to the floor, was still sitting at the same spot and was silent till now.

"I'll stay here for some time, I have to check on Milim after all. That's the whole reason I came with you, after all."

"A-alright, g-give her my r-regard then."

And thus, Rudra left, leaving behind a dumbfounded crow. Especially a red haired demon, who for some reason felt pain in his head.

'Why is my head hurting? Is this what they call headache? Just who is this Rimuru?!'

And at that moment, thanks to Rimuru, Guy Crimson had his first ever headaches.

"Rimuru, I have an offer" Guy said, still with a headache..