In the world of Moe King, I became the ruler of ice.

A noisy argument broke out in a spacious, bright, and reasonably furnished room, a room specifically for entertaining guests.

"Wow, this hot pot thing is so delicious! And these thinly sliced ​​meats, you can eat them after just a quick dip in the broth."

"Mmm~, it smells so good! This fruit-flavored ice cream is pretty good too."

"Young lady, you should eat meat when you eat, cold food is bad for your stomach."

"Hmph, mind your own business. Oh, and remember to leave me some meat, otherwise..."

"Okay, okay."

"It smells so good! I haven't had such delicious food in ages. I thought I was going to be eating tree bark in the forest."

On the contrary, the masked lady kneeling to the side ate at a leisurely pace.

The room echoed with the sound of frantically cooking rice.

At this moment, Rimuru, sitting across the table, silently watched everything before him, a hint of helplessness on his face.

Meanwhile, Gransta coughed lightly and transmitted his voice directly.

They... probably haven't had anything good to eat these past few days. After all, when I saw them, they were still desperately fleeing.

Rimuru was speechless. Was that really the case? Just a moment ago, these people looked unwilling, as if they were about to die.

But now, the moment they see barbecue, they immediately become a different person, completely disregarding their image.

Thinking of this, Rimuru couldn't help but shake his head. Why would the Human Empire send these three people?

Never mind, it's very likely that these guys simply lack the basic common sense of adventurers.

"Uh~" ✘3 hiccup sounds.

After Rimuru saw that they had eaten and drunk their fill, he began to have a formal conversation.

"Well then, please allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Rimuru, the master of this village. Are you here on a mission?"

They were slightly shocked when they heard Rimuru's words; such a powerful monster village was ruled by a slime.

At first, they hesitated about whether to tell the truth, but Ai Ling said it directly.

"Indeed, we were ordered by the Joint Division Chief to come here to investigate the anomalies around the Storm Dragon Cave."

The other teammates looked at Ai Ling in surprise. "No, Miss, you confessed so quickly? They are monsters! What if they kill us all?"

There's nowhere to reason with them anymore.

"Oh, is that so? Why is the human empire so concerned about the Great Forest of Jura?"

Rimuru was a little surprised, and at the same time, he was a little confused.

The three of them looked at Rimuru in surprise. Didn't he know that?

"Don't you know that?"

"Oh, is there anything else I don't know? Could you please tell me? Don't worry, we are all kind-hearted monsters and have no ill intentions."

Rimuru also looked at the three of them, but secretly glanced at the masked lady who seemed uninterested.

"Well, that's good, haha."

"Actually, this is not a secret. You know, the Jura Forest has many mineral resources and many monster races living there, so of course it attracts a lot of attention."

"Of course, the most crucial thing is the legendary hidden treasure in the Jura Forest."

"Uh, a secret treasure?"

"Legend has it that three hundred years ago this place was a city, but a giant dragon destroyed it for a secret treasure, and was eventually sealed here by the hero."

"After the giant dragon was sealed away three hundred years ago, the various demon kings united with the surrounding countries to make a treaty. That is, this forest cannot be invaded."

"But recently, for some reason, the aura of the dragon guarding this forest has disappeared, so that treaty..."

"Dragons? Treaties?"

Rimuru was genuinely puzzled this time. What secret treasure? Why hadn't Ranga and the others mentioned it?

"Yes, it's this treasure that makes the surrounding countries so envious of the Jura Great Forest. I've heard that possessing this treasure can easily grant one strength comparable to a Demon King."

"However, this is just a rumor... whether it's true or not, we don't know."

Ai Ling said the last sentence in a low voice.

Rimuru secretly guessed that the dragon they were talking about was probably the Storm Dragon, but what about this treasure?

【Ranga, do you know what other hidden treasures lie hidden in the forest?】

Ranga, who was hiding in Rimuru's shadow, opened his eyes, also looking puzzled.

【Master, I've lived in the Jura Forest for so long, and I've never heard of any secret treasure. These humans love to spread rumors; please don't believe them.】

Is that how it is?

Rimuru shook his head, forbidding himself from speculating. He'd just ask Brother Storm Dragon later.

After asking these questions, Rimuru turned his gaze to the masked lady beside him.

"Miss wearing a mask, may we talk outside?"

The masked woman looked at Rimuru with some surprise.

"Just call me Jingjiang. Shall we talk outside?"

"Well, I just have a few questions I'd like to ask."

"Oh well!"

Jingjiang nodded.

Under the surprised gazes of the trio, Rimuru and Ms. Shizue went outside to talk.

Driven by curiosity, the three of them secretly followed behind.

"Hey, what are they talking about that makes them so happy?"

"Don't push me, how should I know?"

"But they seemed quite happy, like old friends."

...

Suddenly, a strange change occurred.

Gransta then opened his tightly closed eyes and looked at Jingjiang. He could feel a scorching and violent magical aura.

Is it coming?

A flicker of surprise crossed Gulansta's eyes as he murmured to himself.

Rimuru, who was chatting happily, was startled.

"Miss Jingjiang, what's wrong?"

Jingjiang was seen squatting on the ground in pain, and even the mask on her face had a slight crack.

He kept muttering to himself.

"Are you losing control? Run! I don't want to hurt you..."

"ha?"

Rimuru was unaware of the danger and tried to help Shizue, who had fallen to the ground.

"Rimuru, get out of there quickly! Her magical power has gone berserk; it's dangerous."

"What?!"

Gransta appeared behind Rimuru, grabbed him, and pulled him away from the area.

"Boom!"

The surrounding magic began to become incredibly hot, and an astonishing red magic surged from Miss Shizue's body.

A giant magic circle appeared on the ground, and the surrounding magic began to surge violently.

The three people who were hiding and watching were stunned. How could this happen so suddenly?

"It's actually a high-level summoning spell?"

For some reason, Ai Ling recognized the magic and exclaimed in surprise.

"Holy crap, high-level magic corresponds to A-rank strength or higher, wouldn't that be catastrophic level?"

"It's over, it's all over!"

"If it's truly a catastrophic event, destroying a city would be a piece of cake!"

Rimuru looked at Gransta with some concern, but received a reassuring look in return.