— 300 YEARS AGO —
The only thing I vaguely remember is...
I think I went on a rampage.
And I'm pretty sure that was a different personality, not me.
So when the time comes...
That's fine.
Leave it all to me.
I promise that I will lift your seals when the time comes.
Shortly thereafter, she faded out of the limelight.
Demon Lord Luminus has kept her sealed
and hidden for several centuries since.
The way she fought...
She was worthy of being called the ultimate weapon.
She was truly a sublime being.
Demon Lord Luminus's hidden treasure...
If I were to hide it, I think it would be...
Enter.
You called for me, Lady Luminus?
Hinata, how are things in Tempest?
What... do you mean?
They formed a non-aggression pact with Lubelius
and promised cultural exchange between the two nations.
And yet...
I have seen no signs of any sort of cultural exchange.
Oh...
Their country's hot spring felt quite nice.
The sukiyaki... the tempura...
The musical performance at their festival was wonderful, as well.
So... you see where I'm going with this, no?
THAT TIME I GOT REINCARNATED AS A SLIME SEASON 4
Diablo brought back a bunch of demons.
I decided to put the three ladies he's known forever in charge of them.
Testarossa.
Ultima.
Carrera.
Since you'll be working in this country,
I'm going to assign you jobs.
Testarossa, you'll participate in the Council as our military attaché
and keep the Western Nations in line.
I humbly accept.
The Council will probably get irritating at times,
but don't forget that you're representing our nation.
You can count on me.
Even in the worst-case scenario,
I will leave no evidence of my involvement.
Ultima, you'll investigate criminal acts
as prosecutor general at our Public Prosecutor's Office.
You'll be working closely with our guard force.
I just have to find people more evil than me?
That sounds fun!
That's not exactly what it means, but...
Carrera, you'll be the chief justice of our Supreme Court.
You'll judge all cases fairly in accordance with the law.
My judgment is always fair.
I will give my all in the hope of living up to your expectations.
You might end up a target of resentment in some cases,
and there might be some people who try to bribe you...
Any who attempt to do so will be granted death equally!
I'm sure they're perfectly capable, but are they gonna be okay?
Glance.
I am certain they will be of use to you.
You just don't wanna be the one doing any of those jobs!
If any of them screw up, I'll just have Diablo take their job.
Okay, I'll be counting on you all.
Leave it to us!
With the biggest problems that had been plaguing me for months resolved,
Tempest was finally able to take a step toward becoming a constitutional state.
There's still a lot to do,
but now I should be able to relax for a while.
Ow, hot!
I'll have to be careful not to get arrested myself.
How does it feel working in the new school building, Tiss-sensei?
All of the teachers are thrilled with it.
And all the students who attend here are studying diligently.
The lessons the adults learn are directly linked to their jobs, after all.
We're still a bit short on teachers,
but we have some merchants and Crusaders helping us, so we're managing.
Better hurry or he'll get ya!
Hey, wait up!
How about the children?
They're all getting along and studying well.
Still as full of energy as ever, too.
Great Rimuru!
How lovely it is to see you again!
Wait, are you... Kumara?
Indeed I am!
So you can take on a human form now, huh?
I surely can!
Thus I have decided to attend this school with everyone else!
- Oh, yeah? Well, do your— - Sensei!
Chloe!
I didn't sense your presence at all. Nice going!
So how's school? Having fun?
Yeah!
Rimuru-sensei!
I didn't know you were here!
Kumara and Chloe got to see you first! No fair!
- You shoulda told us you were coming! - For real!
- Right, sorry about that. - Well, Sensei's busy, you know.
That's no excuse!
Demon Lord Leon Cromwell.
We have come to ask that you
allow us to stop selling you our "top-secret merchandise."
What?
A-As you are aware,
Demon Lord Rimuru is gaining power in the Western Nations.
He loathes the summoning of Otherworlders and strictly forbids it.
For this reason, we have found it difficult
to obtain enough merchandise—that is, children who couldn't become Heroes.
Rimuru, eh?
I'm afraid that can't be helped,
but you still have the East, do you not?
I can answer that.
The thing is, the East is actin' shady now, too.
Seems like they're preparin' for war behind closed doors,
which is makin' it harder to get hold of the people we need for the summoning.
But this doesn't mean we won't be doin' business anymore.
We'll be in touch as soon as we're able to summon again.
Why are your lips so loose?
Uh-oh... Did I screw up?
Tell me everything you're hiding from me.
Can't put nothin' past you, Demon Lord Leon!
Thing is, the kids Shizue Izawa took in are still out there.
- Shizu... - But, well...
it's where they are that's the problem...
Is it Tempest?
Right on the money as always!
So that's why there's nothin' we can—
- These children... - Wha?
What are their names?
Ken Mizaru, Ryozeki, Gail Ribus, Alison, and Kurobe Hoeru.
Yeah! Somethin' like that!
I doubt yer interested in merchandise ya can't get yer hands on, though.
Are those names accurate?
Eh?
Is it truly Kurobe and not Chloe?
Wow, he's gettin' awful heated.
I am terribly sorry.
All of those names are inaccurate.
I see.
W-Well, then, Demon Lord Leon, we will take our leave now.
Shall I eliminate those three?
Leave them.
I am more concerned about this war.
If enough people die, it could give rise
to the manifestation of a troublesome demon.
We already have our hands full with Jaune.
Now, as for Tempest...
Yes, sire.
I will send the Blue Knights to investigate.
Please do.
Where in the world are you,
Chloe?
Cut it out already!
What's your problem?! Shut up!
Come on, you boys! Stop playing and help us clean the classroom!
Huh? Why should we have to do a job that's such a pain in the neck?
Ken-chan, you don't want to make Alice-chan mad.
Shut up!
Today's the day I beat Alice and become the real boss!
Is that so?! Well, I'll show you just how scary I can be!
Looks like Kenya's in charge of the class all of a sudden.
And Alice is the class rep, I guess?
Hey, who do you think is gonna win today?
It's gotta be our empress, Alice!
No way Kenya can beat Alice. He's head over heels for her.
Wait, what?! He is?!
Hey, Gail! Who said you could run your mouth?!
Yeah! There's no way Kenya likes me!
Are you crazy?
These kids aren't ready for romance yet. In any case...
Excuse me... Could you all, um...
They shouldn't be giving their teacher a hard time.
Okay, that's enough!
Thanks for your help, Rimuru-sensei.
Whew... Good work handling that class, Tiss-sensei.
Hey! If it isn't His Majesty Rimuru!
You're here today?
Hey, Fritz. Bacchus, too.
I really appreciate you guys helping out here.
Please, stop.
This is heaven compared to our training with the Crusaders.
All the members have been fighting for the job!
We get meals, the kids respect us...
It's nothing like Lady Hinata's brutal training!
Uh, Fritz... You should probably stop...
Well, it's true, ain't it?
Lady Hinata doesn't know the meaning of restraint!
Anyone would rather be here
- than go through that hellish— - Oh?
Well, I do apologize.
Gah! Lady Hinata!
I was actually holding back based on each of your strength levels,
but it seems I needn't have bothered.
I blew it, huh?
Yep.
Anyway, Hinata, why'd you ask me to come to school?
I apologize for taking up your time.
We shouldn't talk here. Come with me to the dungeon.
Have a good look at how these children have grown.
Sure...
And...
I'll be seeing you two later.
Y-Yes, ma'am!
WESTERN NATIONS CERBERUS'S BASE
Sounds like it went well.
Even if it was as a favor to you,
havin' to bow to the guy who killed President Kazalim really sucked.
I appreciate it.
I wanted to get my work here sorted out before leaving the Western Nations.
And Misha, sorry to do this after you came all the way here from the East...
as one of the bosses of Cerberus.
You can say that again.
And after I took over our base in the West from Damrada, too.
Also, are you sure halting business
between Cerberus and Demon Lord Leon was wise?
Well, the top-secret merchandise is hard to come by right now.
And it's not as if failed Heroes can be obtained by just anyone.
We can just offer to resume business with Demon Lord Leon
when we need a connection with him again.
What was yer reasonin' for havin' us tell him about the kids?
I was curious to see what he'd do if we leaked the info to him.
Based on his reaction,
it might be possible to speculate as to why he collects those children.
Pretty much.
Man, I wish you woulda just told us that!
I was sweatin' bullets when he started doubtin' me!
Yeah, yeah, I'm sorry.
And I was freaking out thinking Laplace had blown it!
As was I.
What?! You guys are so mean!
Then again, come to think of it...
Did something happen?
Well...
he tried to confirm the names of the children.
When I said "Kurobe Hoeru,"
he asked if I was sure it was "Kurobe" and not "Chloe."
No use worryin' about that, Footman.
That man's just nervous by nature.
What do you think?
If the wheels of karma continue to turn... we can't rule it out.
Which means... she might really be...
Yes.
The child named Chloe might just be the one Demon Lord Leon is after.
Are you kidding me? Aw, damn it!
What do you mean?
Well, if that's true,
it would mean we've let go of the trump card we could've used against him.
Go, Chloe!
You gotta avenge us!
You'd better get a hit in on Rimuru-sensei!
You guys have gotten too strong!
They're way stronger than your average Holy Knight!
Especially Chloe. She's on another level.
I might be in trouble here if I don't take this seriously.
I wouldn't want to look like a loser in front of these guys!
I lost.
You're so strong, Sensei!
Please teach us!
I finally see what you meant, Hinata.
The kids are a lot stronger now.
But they are still young.
I wanted you to be aware of the situation
to ensure they don't end up growing in the wrong direction.
They'll be fine. They have lots of senpai in this city.
We'll all make sure they don't step onto the wrong path.
I had a feeling you'd say that.
So is this the only reason you came here today?
No, there's one more.
That one's the main reason, in fact.
Lady Luminus keeps asking me if that musical conference is happening yet.
Oh, that?
It seems she was terribly fond of the performance you all put on.
Maybe I'll pay her a visit soon, then.
Rimuru-sensei!
Are you going somewhere with Big Sister Hinata?
Yeah, we were talking about holding a musical conference in Lubelius.
A musical conference? I'd love to go!
Me, too!
If they're going, I'm going, too!
Me, too!
I'll go, too.
I can't trust these guys to go on their own.
Hmm... Yeah, it could be the perfect social studies lesson for them.
I would like to go, as well.
Kumara, no need to be shy.
A little selfishness every now and then is fine.
Let's all go, then!
Yay!
You really are a softie.
No, wait. Maybe we can use this.
If I'm right, we can use Chloe to bring Demon Lord Leon up against Rimuru-san.
Then we can use them for that other job.
Other... job?
Yeah. One Granville asked me to do.
Oh, yeah. Ya did go to see Granville, didn't ya?
Somethin' happen?
To cut it short,
I have one more job to do before I head east.
I see. And that was Maribel's end...
That was a rough time for me, too.
She controlled me so I'd fight Demon Lord Rimuru.
And what became of Demon Lord Rimuru?
Nothing.
He might be suspicious of you,
but I made sure he'd think Maribel was behind all of it.
Don't think badly of me for that, okay?
Now that humanity's hope has been destroyed,
we must exact revenge using Lady Luminus's hidden treasure.
Lady Luminus? And a hidden treasure?
Not sure what you're talking about,
but I'd rather you didn't involve me in this any further.
Surely you know already.
Know what?
That Lady Luminus is the god worshiped by the Luminists,
and that I am the head of the Seven Days Clergy.
Oh, so you'll admit that?
I kinda had a hunch about the Seven Days Clergy thing.
And? What's your grand scheme in telling me that?
I have no grand scheme.
Now that Maribel is gone,
there is simply no one I can trust with the Western Nations
and humanity's future except for you.
But I'm sure Rimuru-san will do something about that.
The Council basically belongs to him now.
You are still young.
The Demon Lord called Rimuru cannot be permitted to exist.
Yuuki, I will not command you to trust me.
But for right now, at least, why don't we form a united front?
And what's in it for me?
I will entrust you with the treasure Lady Luminus is hiding.
That's very intriguing,
but I'm not gullible enough to trust you just like that.
I will make the first move.
You need only act after observing where things stand after that.
Is there something you stand to gain from all this?
Isn't Lady Luminus your master?
She has long since discarded me.
Also, Lady Luminus is preparing to join forces with Demon Lord Rimuru.
In which case... Demon Lord Luminus is my enemy.
Huh... I thought you were just a dried-up old man.
But if you're willing to go that far, it might not be a bad thing to explore.
Our united front will be short-lived and, most likely, our last...
but I have high hopes in you.
And just where is Demon Lord Luminus's hidden treasure?
The hidden treasure...
...is in Lady Luminus's castle.
Then...
Yep.
The battlefield is Lubelius.
Will Rimuru really be killed?
Everything has changed.
Oh, how I long to hold you as soon as possible...
Next time, "Gran, the Hero of Dawn"
GRAN, THE HERO OF DAWN