Inside the guild hall, Rimuru wore a look of utter despair.
The reason?
He was currently dressed in a girl's school uniform.
The skirt was scandalously short—barely covering his thighs—and his slender, pale legs were completely exposed. To top it off, there was a cute little hairclip on his head. Rimuru was done with life.
Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine this day would come.
Tomorrow, I'm setting Whitebeard's ship on fire. And then I'm going to beat the crap out of every last bastard on board!
Initially, when the Whitebeard Pirates joked about him cross-dressing, he hadn't taken it seriously at all. But they had gone and announced it in the guild! The entire place had gone wild. Even his own subordinates said they were looking forward to it!
He'd put up fierce resistance, of course. But in the end, those maniacs forced him into the outfit.
"Lord Rimuru looks sooo adorable like this!" Purple Iris sparkled with stars in her eyes. She just wanted to hug him forever and squish that cuteness!
"I think I'm in love," Marco said, drooling.
"Never knew Rimuru had such... hidden potential!" Garp chuckled wickedly.
"Gurararara!" Whitebeard laughed so hard his stomach hurt.
Rimuru's eyes brimmed with misty tears, his face full of grievance.
These guys are all demons!
"Ding dong…"
A strange chime echoed from the guild's main entrance. Everyone who had been goofing around froze, turning their attention to the door.
It slowly creaked open.
A small head peeked through.
A little girl cautiously stepped in. She blinked in confusion at the room full of strangers staring back at her.
"Um… excuse me, but where am I?" she finally asked.
The guild erupted.
"A kid! Who let a kid in here?"
"She's lost! Someone get her some snacks!"
"A pretty girl? OMG!"
"Protect the cinnamon roll!"
"Alright, who scared her?!"
As the chaotic chatter grew louder and more overwhelming, the girl began to shrink back. Rimuru sighed and stepped forward.
"Quiet!" he roared, releasing his Demon Lord aura.
Everyone instantly fell silent.
"Can't you guys give the newcomer a decent first impression?" he scolded, eyes full of disdain. "And some of you filthy degenerates—if I catch any of you making a move on her, I'll break your third leg."
He snorted, then walked over to the little girl and smiled warmly.
"Hi there! What's your name?"
"I-I'm Hermione Granger," she replied nervously, looking at the slime who was shorter than her. "Um… excuse me, little miss… what is this place?"
Little miss?! Rimuru felt like his entire existence had just turned grey.
With a defeated sigh, he replied, "This is the Dimensional Guild."
"Dimensional Guild?" Hermione tilted her head, clearly confused.
"In short, this place connects countless worlds. People from different universes come here to help each other and grow stronger together," Rimuru explained patiently. "Also, I'm not a girl, and I'm way older than you." He then reached up and gently patted her head.
"Whaaat?!" Hermione's eyes widened in shock.
If what he said was true, then this guild was far beyond anything she could've imagined.
Soon after, Hermione was taken on a tour, personally introducing her to the guild's layout and its many eccentric members.
"Oh my!" Hermione gasped, hands over her mouth. She was completely overwhelmed by the vibrant, bustling city around her.
"Rimuru… sir," she said carefully, still slightly intimidated. "Are you the head of this Dimensional Guild?"
"No need to be so formal," Rimuru said gently, noticing her nervousness. "We're guildmates now. Just call me Rimuru. There's nothing to be afraid of."
"Thank you!" Hermione said gratefully.
"BESTIE!" Milim's voice suddenly boomed from above as she crash-landed straight into Rimuru.
"I heard there's a new member? Where is she? Where is she?!"
Milim's face lit up with excitement. A new member meant a new world, and a new world meant new food! She was already getting hungry just thinking about it.
"Um… who are you?" Hermione asked, blinking up at the overly energetic girl.
"Oh! You must be the new one!" Milim grabbed Hermione's hand and beamed. "I'm Milim! Rimuru's bestie, and also a Demon Lord!"
"Demon Lord?!" Hermione took an instinctive step back. Weren't demon lords supposed to be bloodthirsty monsters?
"Milim's not a bad person," Rimuru quickly reassured her. He could tell exactly what she was thinking. "Yes, she's a Demon Lord, but she's never done anything evil. Also… I'm a Demon Lord too."
"Really?" Hermione relaxed a little, though she still felt a bit nervous. But Milim started chatting her up, and before long, the two of them were laughing like old friends. Then, Milim dragged Hermione off to explore the city.
Worried she might get overwhelmed again, Rimuru followed along.
At first, the scary-looking monsters on the streets made Hermione nervous. But after talking to a few of them, she realized they were actually super friendly—and they even gave her and Milim a ton of free snacks!
Watching the two girls wander off happily, Rimuru smiled to himself.
Maybe world domination isn't really my thing. Just being with friends like this… that's more than enough for me.
And so, Rimuru, Milim, and Hermione spent the whole night roaming the city—laughing, bonding, and building something new together.