Chapter 102: Cream puffs

-Drepe, leader of the high slimes-

I should have never accepted that deal.

Yes, it's true that I was able to become a demon lord thanks to that witch. But I thought that all I would have to do in exchange was to spy on Kalroth! Nobody said anything about this embodiment of terror that calls itself an elf!

And now we're celebrating a crowning ceremony for her similar to the ones human kings usually have. Well, that's what it is supposed to be, but this does not seem to be different from the feasts we often have, all we're doing is eating...

Wait, those people over there... Are they elves? So the rumors were true. I heard that she destroyed their village and forced the survivors to become her servants. She's a dark elf, so I get that she was angry about being abandoned, but isn't that going a bit too far?

Maybe I can get some information by asking them.

"Em, excuse me."

"Woah, a woman made of water?"

All of a sudden I got their full attention.

"It's slime actually... Sorry for bothering you, I heard that you were brought here by our new queen and I got curious. Could you tell me about what happened?"

"Oh, that? Our village was attacked and then we saw her. She looked so angry, I had never been so afraid of anyone in my entire life!"

What?! So it was true?!

"A-and she told you to become her servants?"

"No, we're the ones who asked her."

"Uh?"

"Her unapproachable beauty, her overwhelming power, her aura of superiority... It all combines to make one want to become her slave, does it not?"

"..."

"Ah, but she hasn't given us much attention ever since we came here. We were hoping for a little more abuse..."

They were HOPING for more abuse?! What did she do to them to make them so broken?

She's even more terrible than I imagined... But I need to learn more about her personality. Even leaving aside my job as a spy, it would be better to know her well for my own safety.

Let's see... She's over there... She already looked imposing in the more casual dress she was wearing before, but now she's changed to something more expensive looking that accentuates her curves and height, making her seem even more intimidating. You can tell that everyone here cannot help but feel inadequate when standing near her. Even the way she walks seems very deliberate as if she was paying close attention to every single step.

Fortunately, I'm able to melt my body into a puddle until only my head remains. This way, nobody will notice that I'm following her.

"Uh, Drepe? Why are you following the new queen?" Says a random demon.

"Shut up."

...

She's eating another one of those cream puffs. There are all kinds of food here but she's only going after those things. Well, seeing how elegant and graceful she is I guess she must be accustomed to attending high-class parties. It wouldn't be surprising for her to be a picky eater.

But now it seems that all the cream puffs are gone, except for the one the boss of the orks has on his plate. Uh? She's approaching the plate while his back is turned as if she was being careful to make sure that he doesn't notice. And she is... she's taking the last cream puff from him...

It looks like she's trying to be stealthy, but there's no way that he didn't notice something as blatant as what she did, not that he would dare to call her out... Ah! That's what it is! By taking his food in such an obvious manner she's asserting her dominance by making him pretend not to notice.

She can pull off these psychological tricks so easily. She must be used to dominating others.

Now she's approaching a pair of 'maids'. Obviously, we have no maids around here, but we needed a few for the party. Some nagas were chosen for the job, not because they knew what to do, but because they already had the uniforms. I don't know what they used them for before...

"These tables here are not aligned properly."

What is she talking about? Those tables look perfectly fine to me. The two maids also look confused, but they seem too scared to contradict her.

"S-sorry, please let me fix it."

"Stop. What are you doing? You're making it worse!"

"Eek! Please forgive me!"

I still don't see what the problem is. Is she doing this just to scare them? The maids grab the table again with trembling hands.

"You're moving it the wrong way."

"W-we are?"

Yes, this is clearly just bullying. I guess it must be fun to scare people like that. Is this a hobby of hers?

"Just let it go, I'll fix it myself."

"No, you don't have to..."

And now she's making it look like they are so useless that their queen needs to do their job for them. Is she trying to give them an inferiority complex?

"Ah, also, it looks like those plates over there are not evenly... Nevermind."

She stopped when she saw that the maids were starting to cry. Did she actually show some mercy? That can't be... She must have just decided that she was already done with them.

Where is she going now? Oh, she's leaving the room. Uh, she'll probably notice if I keep following her in the hallway, I should probably leave it for now.

All the people near the door move aside in a hurry, almost in a panic, to let her through. She leaves with a confident stride, each one of her movements is a picture of elegance and grace.

-Luna-

"Ouch."

Uh... I tripped and fell rolling down the stairs. It's so hard to walk on these heels... Luckily there was nobody around to see me, that would have been embarrassing.

I should just switch back to my boots. But Nera wanted me to try wearing more elegant clothes... I guess I'll take this as a chance to practice. Still, I need to pay attention to every single step, my movements are all so stiff that everyone watching me was probably containing their laughter...

"I believe the kitchen was over here..."

If Mari is in there maybe I can ask her to make some more of those cream puffs.

...

Ah, too bad, there's nobody here.

Uh? there's something on the floor, it's a bit dark in here... Are these apples? Did someone knock over a fruit barrel?

There are also a bunch of apples on the table, isn't this way too disorganized? I guess I'll pick them up since I'm here.

"Mmm."

After grabbing one, I notice how sweet and juicy it looks. Maybe I'll try a bite.

*Chomp*

"UAAAAGH!!!"

"EH?!"

It was a lot harder than I expected, but more importantly, before I could finish biting into it, the apple began to scream.

And when I nervously turn it around, I see that there's a face that looks carved into the other side. Now that I look closely, it also has tiny hands and feet.

The apples on the floor also begin to move and to talk.

"She noticed us!"

"She's going to eat us!"

W-what is this?! What are they?!

{Race: Apple folk, Class: Helper, Element: Earth, Level: 21}

Oh, that's right, I think I heard that this was also a type of manaborn. But I didn't expect them to actually look like apples...

Anyway, I should probably explain myself before they misunderstand.

"Ah, sorry, you looked delicious so I-"

"NOOO!!!"

It looks like I made it worse.

"Excuse me, my lady."

Another apple folk just jumped on the desk, this one has a face that looks strangely... handsome?

{Race: Apple folk, Class: Magic brawler, Element: Fire, Level: 289}

Woah, so strong, and 'magic brawler'? I wonder how he brawls with such a small body.

"I understand that you have a difficult time controlling your hunger..."

"No, I was just-"

"...But could you please show some compassion for your new servants and let that child go?"

This is a child?! This is bad, now people are going to say that I eat children.

I wonder if my flesh shaping will work on him. Ah, it does, I managed to heal the bite. After that, I place him back on the table.

"Thank you very mu-"

"Out of my way fruit brains!"

A woman just entered the kitchen. Red hair done in a ponytail, red eyes, and what looks like red veins can be seen through her skin. A pair of very long fangs can be seen when she opens her mouth. She's kicking the apple folk on the floor, sending them flying as she walks.

{Race: Blood demon, Class: Assassin, Element: Darkness, Level: 352}

Ah, her level is higher than any of the other demon lords.

"Zerana, I didn't expect you to show yourself here. You never answer Kalroth's calls."

"Ha, I didn't give a shit about that moron, but if this queen of darkness is really as strong as everyone says she might end up making even me kiss her ass. That's why I'm going to get rid of her right now."

"Uh, maybe you shouldn't be talking about that right no-"

"We're going to poison her! I've been told that she was eating these things, I put enough verpa toxin in this one to kill a hundred bearturtles. You fruit faces were helping with the food, right? You're going to help me!"

"I think... I'd rather not..."

"Eh? You better not make me 'persuade' you... Also, who's that long chick over there? A friend of yours?"

Long chick?

"That's... obviously... our new queen."

"Oh."

I see, so she planning to assassinate me. More importantly, she has a cream puff on her hand! So there was still one left.

"So, if I understand correctly, you were going to give that to me."

"Y-yes, I was. Got a problem?"

"Yay! Thank you!"

She seems to be a bit confused and doesn't give me the cream puff. So I take it from her hand.

"You heard what I said about the poison. Didn't you?"

Ah, yes, the poison is giving it a bitter taste, it's ruined the flavor a little. But I can still feel the delicious sweetness fill my mouth with creamy happiness.

"Don't worry, it was still delicious."

forli

Anyway hope you like the chapter. I feel like I might be introducing too many characters lately but don't worry, most of them won't have a very big role. You don't need to remember them all.