Shuna, the strong-willed woman who always leads everyone, has a secret side she only shows in front of Rimuru. Her usual tough attitude is just a front she created to be useful to him.
One day, Rimuru visits Shuna's room because of a tiny scratch. But when they're alone, Shuna bursts into big tears. "When I'm with you, Rimuru-sama, I just can't keep it together." It's a special confession from her.
She's been holding back her pain, not wanting to show weakness. Rimuru gently holds her, strokes
By Rimuru's Side, You Cry, and Then You Smile - By Rimuru's Side, You Cry, and Then You Smile
The cold air of dawn seeped into the stone floor of the corridor, chilling it through.
The two of them sat side by side. Shuna had buried her tear-swollen face against her knees, and Shion had a hand resting gently on her shoulder — they had been like that for hours now. The dried traces of the passion and tears from Episode 5 still lingered white on their cheeks.
That was when it happened.
Without a sound, Souei stood before them. His deep indigo hair barely stirred in the breeze that carried the scent of morning. His golden, vertically slit pupils — reptilian in their stillness — gazed down at the two of them, utterly expressionless.
"Eep!?"
Shion leapt up. Shuna, startled, raised her head as well.
"I am aware of the reason you two were making such a commotion."
Leaning his back against the wall, Souei stated it plainly, without preamble.
"What do you mean?"
Shuna's voice was hoarse. Even so, she was desperately trying to put on her usual dignified mask of the strategist.
"By the authority of the Information Management Division."
Tempest's intelligence and counter-intelligence organization — the Secret Service. Souei was its overseer. From their headquarters on the second basement floor of the Central Office, they monitored all anomalies throughout the city.
"From the night of Episode 1, I detected Shuna's secret meetings with Rimuru. Immediately after, I deployed a counter-intelligence net. All external record leakage was completely blocked."
Shuna's breath stopped.
He had known. From the very beginning. From that night onward. And Souei hadn't just been watching. He was saying that he had used his organization to protect those secret nights between Rimuru and Shuna.
"Why... did you stay silent until now?"
Her interrogating voice trembled.
"Because you needed to realize it yourself."
A short reply. His golden pupils did not waver in the slightest.
"Last night, the reason Rimuru-sama visited the Central Office together with Benimaru was to ask for our opinion on whether he should formally make his relationship with Shuna public."
At those words that followed, all strength drained from Shuna's body. The coldness of the stone floor suddenly intensified.
She had been wrong. She hadn't been betrayed. She hadn't been kept a secret.
That night, Rimuru had called Benimaru and Souei — and had discussed Shuna. How to handle things so that Shuna wouldn't be hurt. Whether it would be alright to bring her forward as his official lover. He had been consulting the two of them about such things.
The basis for the flames of jealousy that had been burning in Shuna's chest until yesterday crumbled away like sand. The tension that had been stretched taut melted, as if a dam had broken.
"Ah... ahh..."
The strength left her knees. Still seated on the stone floor, she covered her face with both hands. These were not tears of anger or despair this time. They were tears of relief. She stifled her voice, her shoulders shaking.
"...Isn't that wonderful, Shuna-san?"
Shion sat back down beside her, speaking not in her usual loud voice, but in a surprisingly quiet one. Her large reddish-purple eyes were faintly glistening as well.
"Yes... yes..."
Though her voice was a mess from crying, Shuna nodded again and again.
For a while, the corridor held only Shuna's small sobs and the sound of birds at dawn.
But.
"However."
Souei opened his mouth.
Shuna wiped her tears and raised her face. Shion tilted her head as well.
"I also harbor feelings for Rimuru-sama that exceed the normal master-servant relationship. I considered it necessary to state this first."
Three seconds of complete silence fell upon the corridor.
"...Huh?"
Shion's mouth fell open.
"You... don't tell me...!"
Her tears stopped in an instant.
"I love Rimuru-sama! I love him so much! I won't lose to anyone!"
Shion stood up and shouted, and Shuna rose on trembling legs as well. Then, both of them simultaneously pointed at Souei.
"Then we're ALL rivals, aren't we!!"
"E-even you, toward Rimuru-sama...!"
At that moment, loud, thudding footsteps approached.
"What's this, what's this, making a racket first thing in the morning!?"
His wild crimson hair swaying, Benimaru poked his face into the corridor. In his hand, for some reason, was a bottle of sake. He was fully ready to drink from the morning.
"Benimaru-san! It seems Souei-san also likes Rimuru-sama!"
Shion thrust her finger out and reported. Benimaru froze for a moment.
"Hah!? Souei, you... seriously?"
"Seriously. I like him too."
He admitted it flatly, without expression.
Benimaru scratched his head vigorously.
"No, I mean, I'm not really like that... I don't..."
"Your face is red, isn't it!"
Shion pointed. Benimaru's cheeks were indeed faintly flushed.
"Shut up! I said it's like a big brother kind of feeling, didn't I!"
"A big brother kind of feeling that makes your face turn bright red, I see."
Without thinking, sarcasm slipped from Shuna's mouth.
"Shuna, even you...!"
The corridor instantly turned into a scene of carnage. Shuna, who had been sobbing; Shion, shouting; Souei, expressionlessly twisting the knife; Benimaru, turning bright red and looking more suspicious the more he denied it. The formalization of a love quadrangle.
However, just as the chaos began to settle down a little, Souei spoke up, saying he had one more thing.
"Shuna, I have something to give you."
From his pocket, he took out a small, faintly glowing magic stone. A listening magic stone. It was a recording medium from the surveillance network that the Information Management Division had set up throughout Rimuru City.
"All the nighttime records from Episode 1 onward are here. This is proof that the records of Rimuru-sama's nights with you never once leaked outside."
A warmth spread slowly through Shuna's chest.
Mere counter-intelligence activity — that's all it was, if you put it that way. But this was something Souei had protected all by himself, without telling anyone. For Rimuru's sake, and for Shuna's.
"Rimuru-sama has been thinking constantly these past few days. About how he should make his relationship with you public. Last night, he was merely consulting us about that decision."
The reason Rimuru had called Benimaru and Souei was because he had been seriously thinking about her. That fact began to melt the frozen shards of stone deep in her heart.
"...Rimuru-sama was thinking about Shuna-san that much, huh."
Shion murmured. Her voice lacked its usual intense brightness. Instead, there was a somehow heartfelt gentleness in it.
"Well, that's just like Rimuru, I guess."
Benimaru scratched his head and said it shortly.
Shuna accepted the magic stone with trembling hands. Her eyes grew moist once more. But these tears were far warmer than the ones before.
At that moment, Souei deliberately pulled something from his pocket.
It was a cat plushie.
A fluffy white cat. Expressionlessly, he began to stroke it gently.
"Souei-san, why are you bringing that out now!!"
Shion shouted. The tension-filled atmosphere of the battlefield instantly deflated. The god of romantic comedies was apparently on Souei's side after all.
"It calms me."
"Like hell I'd know!"
Benimaru burst out laughing. Shuna, too, felt the corners of her mouth loosen involuntarily.
Dry laughter echoed softly through the corridor.
──
After the commotion had settled down, Shuna, with her eyes still swollen from crying, looked over the three of them in turn. Shion, Benimaru, and Souei, stroking his cat plushie.
Everyone held special feelings for Rimuru. And Rimuru was thinking about Shuna, too. Last night's decision was an extension of that.
But — it wasn't over yet.
"I won't run away."
A quiet voice fell upon the corridor.
"What do you mean?"
"I will ask Rimuru-sama directly."
Shuna stood, planting her feet firmly on the ground.
"Whether he will see me as his lover, even in front of everyone — I will ask Rimuru-sama that."
"Isn't that an ultimatum!?"
Shion's eyes widened. Benimaru's expression turned serious.
"You're really going to do this?"
Shuna nodded. Souei's stroking hand stopped completely. His golden eyes quietly gazed at Shuna.
She clenched her trembling hands tightly.
(I want to be someone special to Rimuru-sama.)
(Not anyone else — me.)
The night had fully broken, and the morning light streamed long across the stone floor of the corridor. In Shuna's wisteria-colored eyes dwelled a hard light of resolve, different from the hesitation and jealousy of the night before.
To deliver these words to Rimuru.
That was a story still to come.
──
That night.
In her room at the Crimson Pavilion, Shuna sat before her desk with the lights left on. On the desk lay the magic stone Souei had given her. Proof that Rimuru had been seriously thinking about her.
Outside the window, the lights of the Central Office's third floor.
There was a knock.
"Shuna, you there?"
Shuna stood and opened the door. Rimuru stood there, looking slightly worried.
"I left you in tears yesterday, so it's been on my mind ever since."
Shuna said nothing and invited Rimuru into the room. The two of them sat down side by side on the bed.
"I heard everything from Souei."
When Shuna said it shortly, Rimuru raised his eyebrows in slight surprise.
"I heard that Rimuru-sama was consulting Benimaru and the others about me. About what to do with our relationship."
"...Are you angry?"
"I'm not... angry."
Shuna shook her head slightly. Then, she gently placed her hand over his. Don't be afraid, self. Just convey things as they are.
"But tomorrow, please listen to what I have to say properly. It's something important."
Rimuru nodded quietly and squeezed Shuna's hand back.
Just that, somehow, was already enough.
Shuna gently rested her forehead against Rimuru's chest. In the silence, only the beating of Rimuru's heart quietly reached her ears.
Neither of them said anything.
Instead, their bodies naturally sought each other. Rimuru's hands wrapped around Shuna's waist. Shuna closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around Rimuru's chest. It wasn't a violent act, like spewing out the passion, anxiety, and jealousy from the nights before. It was simply a gentle, quiet sensuality — as if confirming each other's existence.
Clothes fluttered softly to the floor. Lips overlapped, fingers traced bare skin. Rimuru's lips were lowered to Shuna's black hair. Gently, he brushed aside the bangs that hid them, and kissed the two small horns that were the proof of an ogre.
"Nn..."
A small, spoiled sigh from Shuna.
Rimuru's fingers slowly traced Shuna's chest, gently teasing its tips.
"Ah..."
Her body trembled. Rimuru pressed his rigid, erect penis against Shuna's pussy. The glans sank in as if being sucked into her meltingly wet entrance.
"Rimuru-sama... come."
Squelch.
The hot penis slowly filled Shuna's vagina.
"Nn-ahhh!"
Shuna's back arched. At the sensation of being deeply connected, all strength left her body. Rimuru's hips began to move gently, yet surely, all the way deep inside.
"Ah, ah... it's so deep..."
The spoiled tone she showed only in front of Rimuru naturally slipped out. Every time she was rubbed inside, her mind went completely blank, unable to think of anything. Pleasure washed over her like gentle waves, receding and surging again.
"Ahh, Rimuru-sama... more, deeper..."
As if in answer, Rimuru thrust his hips in deep.
"Shuna, you're the most important to me."
Those words whispered in her ear raced through Shuna's entire body, pulling her toward climax.
"Aaahhh...!!"
Her vagina squeezed tightly around Rimuru's penis, and in that moment, she felt hot semen pumping, pumping into her womb. At the sensation of the cloudy white fluid filling her depths, her whole body went sweetly numb.
They held each other like that for a while.
"Tomorrow, I'll hear what you have to say."
"...Yes."
Shuna answered quietly, her
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