“At any rate, let’s get dressed, shall we? You can’t be thinking of speaking to me while dripping wet, can you? I’m not myself being like this, either.”

As if he had no intention of hiding his body, the Great Demon King casually rose up from the bathtub in which he had been soaking.

As various things were on full display, Loren was worried about Lapis’ reaction, but when he glanced toward her, he found that she was kneeling in the bathtub like himself, her eyes closed and her face down, not looking at the Great Demon King at all.

“I’ll have some things ready for you right away. Do not resist, as it will be in vain.”

The word ‘resist’ caught Loren’s attention and, wondering what kind of face the Great Demon King had on his face as he spoke those words, he tried to look up slightly to see. But he hurriedly cast his eyes and face back down when he saw girls in maid uniforms entering without a noise from what looked like the entrance of the bathhouse as the Great Demon King snapped his fingers.

Even though he was kneeling in the warm bathtub, Loren could not stop his body from shivering from the chill. He was completely overwhelmed by the auras of the newly-entered girls, who were probably maids judging by their appearances.

[‘Are you okay, onii-san? …If something happens, I’ll do everything I can to protect you!’]

Loren was so nervous that he could not answer the worried voice of Shayna in his mind. The thought that if he did one thing wrong and offended anyone present, he would almost certainly not make it out of this place alive dominated his body. The girls in maid’s uniforms might look cute, but the aura Loren sensed from them was comparable to that of Judie, Lapis’ mother and one of the Demon Kings he had met before.

“Your Majesty, these people are…?”

As the girls began to wipe the Great Demon King’s body down with a clean cloth, one of them looked down at Loren and his friends and asked.

A suspicious group of people entering through a window while the king was bathing was, no matter how you looked at it, a criminal story; even if they did not do anything wrong, they would have been executed immediately. Even though there was the circumstance that Emery was told to bring them in front of the Great Demon King in the fastest way possible, it was up to the king to take it into consideration.

Loren naturally felt his body tense up, but the Great Demon King, while being wiped down by the other maids, replied in a very light tone to the one who had asked the questions.

“They are my guests. These are the ones I had ordered Emery to bring as soon as possible. These men were only brought in, and Emery was only carrying out my order. Neither deserves blame.”

“Would you have an audience with them like this?”

“A funny joke, but you’re not serious, are you? Get them some change of clothes and rooms at once. They are my guests, and I expect you to treat them as such.”

“As you wish.”

The moment the maid bowed her head at the Great Demon King’s words, the tension that had been building up in the place suddenly dissipated.

Loren was about to let out a sigh of relief at being let off the hook when he saw empty-handed maids running towards them and gasped at the sight.

Without hesitation, the girls stepped into the bathtub in their maid uniforms and approached Loren and his friends, walking above the warm water. Loren, who had thought that if the maids went up to them in such a state, they would wet the hem of their skirts and would have to leave the bathtub themselves, could only stare in stunned amazement at the maids approaching without wetting even their toes, let alone the hem of their skirts.

“Now, esteemed guest, please give me your hand. Your clothes and equipments will deteriorate if you keep wearing them like this.”

“Is this not Miss Lapis? It has been a long time. How have you been? It is not good for your health to have your hair and clothes soaked like this. Please change at once.”

“Hm, is it alright if I just carry this blonde miss somewhere else?”

Loren took the hand offered by the maid while listening to Gula protesting about being the only one who got treated badly. The maid then took his hand, and just when Loren thought she would pull him toward her, she lightly picked him up and carried him horizontally in her arms.

He was quite heavy, including his equipment, yet here he was, being held by a maid much smaller than him in size and could not do anything about it. Loren turned his eyes toward Lapis, who was also being held by another maid. Noticing his gaze, Lapis gently shook her head.

“It’s useless to resist, so it’s better if you do as you are told.”

“Your Majesty, our guest here has a rather impressive body, so… Would you mind if we borrow a change of clothes from Your Majesty’s wardrobe?”

The maid who was holding Loren in her arms without even pretending to feel heavy asked the Great Demon King, who was swarmed by other maids and was in the process of putting on a bathrobe. The King looked at Loren being held in the arms of the maid with amusement, and then nodded.

“Use whatever you like. It would be interesting to see a human wearing my clothes.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

The maid slightly bent her waist in a bow and said thank, then walked out of the bath and down the corridor with Loren still in her arms.

Loren was somewhat concerned about what would happen to the other two, but he decided that he probably should be more concerned about what would happen to him. However, even if he was worried, he did not think he would stand a chance against the maid who was carrying him, and he concluded that he would have to trust her and let her do whatever she wanted. He decided to leave his body to the maid, at least making it easier for her to do her job.

“Esteemed guest, your reaction is quite favorable.”

The maid, perhaps feeling the strength leaving Loren’s body in her arms, told him this without stopping.

“It’s easier for me to do my job if you entrust yourself to me.”

“Maybe I’m just used to giving up things.”

“I think that would be an accurate assessment of the situation.”

Loren thought that he would be no match for the maid who smiled at him, and he thought that no matter how he was treated in the future, it would be wise to let her do as she pleased.

What happened from that point on was something Loren did not want to remember much.

In the room to which he was taken, Loren was stripped naked by the maids who had apparently come for help, and his clothes and equipment were taken away.

Loren has a sense of shame as much as anyone else, and it was not that there were not a lot of different thoughts running through his mind, but he had decided to do as he was told, so he had no choice but to endure it.

The maids said that they would take care of the clothes and equipment they had stripped of Loren and dry them. But Nig, who always clung to Loren’s shoulders, refused to be taken away along with the clothes, and tried to stay even by using the threads it had spit out. So, Loren interceded and managed to keep it from being taken away.

Underwear-wise, there was no problem because something in Loren’s luggage had escaped getting wet. But for the clothes, one problem occurred when he tried to use the Great Demon King’s personal belongings: The Great Demon King himself was quite tall and had a well-trained body, but he was still somewhat smaller than Loren, and there were no clothes for Loren.

The maids immediately gave up on trying to fit Loren into the existing clothes, and after taking measurements of Loren’s body, they sewed up a set of formal wear at an incredible speed.

“Are clothes that easy to make?”

“As a maid working at the Great Demon King’s castle, it’s only natural to be able to do this level of work.”

The maid answered and dressed Loren in a white and silver ceremonial robe.

Loren, who was made to wear the heavy and extremely-hard-to-move-in robe, lifting his hands and twisting around to check his body while looking with disgust at the hem that seemed to drag on the floor and the sleeves that were too loose.

“It doesn’t suit me…”

Loren had never worn such clothes in his whole life. There was no full-length mirror nearby so he could not see what he looked like, but he was sure he looked ridiculous, and the thought darkened his mood. However, the maid was looking at Loren’s outfit with admiring eyes for some reason.

“I tailored it myself, but I’m surprised at how well it suits you.”

“I don’t think there’s any point in trying to flatter me though. Do you?”

“No, no, you look very dignified. You could even claim to be royalty.”

Loren thought that it was too much even for flattery, but then he remembered that the Great Demon King had told the maids to treat them as guests. He concluded that she was at least trying not to make him feel uncomfortable, so he gave up on checking his own clothes and asked the maid, who still had a look of surprise on her face, about what he should do next.

“Your meal is ready, and you are to dine with His Majesty.”

“That’s just another thing that makes me sick to my stomach.”

In the human realm, Loren had always found just meeting with nobles and royalty to be an immense mental fatigue. Now, with a being called the Great Demon King in front of him, it was hard to believe that he could afford to enjoy the taste of the food, and he was likely to suffer from heartburn and stomachache.

“But the ingredients are carefully selected and only the best are used, and the best chefs in the demon territory will cook.”

“I don’t have any doubts about the quality of the food. It’s just a matter of mood.”

Loren answered, wondering if she would understand. Then he asked the maid a question that had suddenly occurred to him.

“So, how long are we going to be staying here?”

“Our Lord understands that you are in a hurry. I have been told that since you have been invited to stop by, we do not intend to keep you for long.”

Dinner and lodging for one night. Loren secretly breathed a sigh of relief when the maid told him that tomorrow morning his wet clothes and equipment would be dry and he would be able to leave.

“If you are satisfied, will you accompany me? I will take you to the place where you will dine with His Majesty.”

Nig climbed up to Loren’s left shoulder and clung tightly to it. Loren patted its back as the maid bowed and led the way. Following her, Loren left the room where he had been fitted for the new clothes, and was led down another long hallway for a while before being shown into a room.

“Loren! Are you alright? You’re the only one who is late, so I’m not sure what’s going… on…”

As soon as he entered the room, Loren was greeted by Lapis, who was not dressed in her usual priest’s uniform, but in a dress that showed both shoulders and emphasized the lines of her body. The dress was purple in color, perhaps because she was a demon, and it looked somewhat alluring. But since she did not wear any makeup or did her hair in any elaborate way, there was a hint of innocence about her appearance, and Loren thought it suited her very well.

On the other side of the room was Gula, whose dress was similar in design to Lapis’ but in gold color, and her hair was set in an updo. Together with her more shapely body, she looked bewitching.

“You both dress up very prettily.”

“Is that… really Loren?”

Lapis tilted her head, staring fixedly at Loren while Gula, who was watching Loren from behind her, froze up with her eyes wide open, even forgetting to blink.

Loren chuckled and shrugged, thinking that the clothes really must not suit him for the two of them to have such reactions.

“If you can’t help it, just laugh. It’s ok.”

“No, that… Uhm, how should I say it…?”

Lapis stammered as if she could not choose the right words to say, but she could not continue because several maids filed in, bringing various items into the room and began to decorate it.

A clean tablecloth was draped over a large table, and various lights were brought in and placed here and there to illuminate the room as much as possible. Four chairs with elaborate decorations, which Loren could not even imagine how expensive they would be, were brought in and placed in even positions around the set table.

Loren and the others watched on to see what was about to happen, but they became a little alarmed to see the Great Demon King, who had been completely naked in the bathroom, enter the room following the maids who were working.

Wearing a black garment very similar in design to the one Loren was currently wearing, the King smiled with satisfaction when he saw Loren and the others.

“You’re here. Wait for a while. I would have saved us the trouble if I used the dining room I always use, but if someone sees me eating with humans and such, there will be a lot of trouble.”

“Dinner, Your Majesty?”

Lapis asks on behalf of the group. Loren did not know what to say to the King, and he felt it would be dangerous to let Gula speak, but he also thought that there would be no one better suited to speak with the Great Demon King than Lapis, the daughter of a Demon King.

“Yes, daughter of Judie. Since I invited you this time, I am obliged to entertain you. It’s a small thing, but enjoy it.”

Loren’s face twitched as he thought that there was no way he could enjoy this, but Lapis and Gula managed to produce something that could only be called forced smiles.

As the Great Demon King watched the three of them with an amused smile, the maids continued to set up the room.