(A/N: Sorry for not uploading this sooner.  I got Covid and then as soon as I got better I went on vacation for a little bit so I've been quite busy without time to write. So yeah sorry.  on another note if the end seems a little rushed that'd be because I was just trying to get something out after not uploading for so long.  Any criticism is welcome (I am trying to get better at writing) so please tell me any problems there are in the story so far or with the chapter in particular.  Hope you have a great day and enjoy this chapter!)

I was going to have fun trying to explain this to them... I think to myself as the two guild workers stared at my back in shock.

"..." I silently run through some solutions.

It's a little too late to be changing my status on my back, isn't it? I could play dumb, or act like it's normal... well really what other options do I even have? I think to myself.

Other options run through my head at super-speed thanks to thought acceleration.

I can't think of anything that wouldn't just put me in a more dangerous situation... playing dumb it is.

"Is there a problem?" I ask innocently. They look at me as I say this staring at them.

The half-elf began to pull back to reality. She clears her throat and regains her composure.

"No nothing's wrong," She responded.

"Eh?" the other one still off in her own little world looked towards the half-elf then back at me then at the half-elf again.

"But Eina-" she began but was swiftly cut off by the half-elf, now Eina.

"Is there another issue? Misha? " she asked the other guild worker, now Misha.

"Ah- a-arent you going to ask about how she got such a ridiculous status? Outside of the dungeon city no less," she asked concern scrawled across her face.

"No. I am not. It may be strange, yes, but there's no need to figure out how she got it. Simply what it says and that it's real, both of which I've accomplished.

Eh? Wait when did you confirm it was real? I asked myself.

"If that is all then I shall take my leave," she spoke and handled the situation like a professional. Thankfully I didn't have to do much acting.

Misha still didn't seem one hundred percent convinced but thanked Eina for the assistance and we were luckily able to move along without incident.

"Haaaa," I let out a small sigh of relief at this. I began to move towards of the room behind Misha.

However, something strange happened as soon as she opened the door.

Standing right before our path when the door opened was Sophia who held her same blank look as always. However, something about the look in her eyes told me something urgent was going on outside.

She began to move her mouth without making a sound while staring intensely at me.

I couldn't quite catch what she was saying. I simply tilted my head in response.

"Tch." she clicked her tongue and walked passed a surprised Misha. I guess she didn't expect Sophia to be standing right there as soon as the door opened, but more importantly, was what she told me upon drawing into the room.

"Loki familia is here," she whispered in my ear.

"Eh?!" I can't help but let slip a surprised squeak as Sophia informs me of a problem.

"We'll be fine as long as we don't draw attention to ourselves," she says

"O-okay." I manage.

Sheesh, I'm being thrust from one situation to another without warning. I lament to myself.

Give me a break. I cry in my head.

Sophia turns towards Misha. "Is there anything we need to do before getting this one her license?" she asks.

"Huh? Wah? No... we're just about done here." she responded at first confused but after gaining her composure she answered.

She also seemed to take note of the tension in our expressions.

"Hey Misha can you do me a favor?" she asked.

Wait? You two know each other? I asked in my head.

"Huh depends. What is it?" she asked.

"Just. if anyone asks don't mention that you saw rimuru. Can you do that for me?" she asked.

At this point, I was kind of lost, to be honest.

Huh? Wait, is this a protective measure against the Loki Familia searching for us? I question internally.

"Mainly the newspaper. I know they'd eat up rimuru's story like they did mine, but could you keep it a secret for me?" She explained.

Oh. I never even thought about that. The Loki familia seemed to be celebrities. Based on that someone like me might end up attracting unwanted attention in the form of the media. If they spread news of me there's no question that the Loki familia will find me.

"Huh... well I'm going to have to report Rimuru's status to my superiors and once it's in their hands there isn't much I can do..." she admitted.

Sophia's eyes sharpened in what seemed to be frustration, but it was so slight I barely even noticed it.

"Can you ask of this for me? If you're asked why just say Rimuru here wants her information to be private," she added. "If that doesn't work then that's fine, but I at least want to try to cover this whole thing up." she sighed.

"Hmmm. okay, I'll see what I can do, but don't get your hopes up." Misha sighed.

"That's fine thanks." Sophia finished with a nod.

She then threw her glance backward and scanned the room, presumably for The Loki familia.

"Okay, Rimuru. Whatever you do, do not look at them. They'll sense your stares." she whispered to me in a hushed tone so Misha wouldn't hear. "Also can you change your appearance?" she asked.

Huh. right I guess I can... but wait how did she know that? I question.

<<Answer. She likely remembered your first encounter where you changed your appearance in order to walk around the town undetected by The Loki familia.>>

Ah... yeah, I guess I did do that, didn't I?

"One second," I whispered back.

"Hey, Misha can we use this room real quick?" Sophia asked turning back to Misha.

"Huh? I don't know..." she sounded hesitant.

"Please," Sophia asked. She clasped Misha's hands

I've never seen her so desperate before. Then again I haven't known her for very long so maybe this is just par for the course normally? I think to myself... but Misha's shocked reaction told me otherwise.

Misha seemed to agonize over it for a second but upon seeing Sophia's desperate eyes one more time she gave in.

"O-okay, but be quick about it." she reluctantly agreed.

"Thank you." Sophia sighed in relief. Again something that felt strange for her to do.

"I've never seen you so desperate before Sophia. What kind of situation did you find yourself in?" Misha sounded concerned.

"It's a little complicated," Sophia admitted.

"Alright, but like I said don't take too long in there the last thing I need is for me to get in trouble thanks to you taking up a room," she said.

"I'm sorry for asking but why is it so bad for us to take up this room?" I couldn't help but ask. I simply didn't see the issue.

Misha looked shocked at me.

"Well... ah- hmm... idk okay but my manager will find a way to get mad at me!" she complained.

Fair enough. I say to myself in my head remembering my own experiences.

"Well okay, we'll be quick," I say.

"You better be," she complained before walking away. Sophia closed the door and pushed me into the room.

(Finn POV)

Ever since Rimuru turned things have become very complicated. The moral of the Loki familia took a hit. The idea that someone as powerful as Rimuru was a future enemy made things feel hopeless. For some like Bete, it just served as a greater motivation to get stronger, but very few shared his enthusiasm.

Someone in particular that I took notice of was Aiz. She seemed particularly out of it ever since then, which was very unusual because I figured she of all people would be the most motivated by this. This also took the wind out of the sails of others who looked up to her.

I tried to have Riveria talk to her, but even she couldn't get through to her. It was very nerve-racking to think that even Aiz was like this.

So we returned to the surface with low morale despite our supposed successful expedition.

If that wasn't enough I could feel my thumb throbbing. Something was putting me off. I'm not sure what it was, but it put me on edge. So much so that when we split up to sell our magic stones, items, and such I decided to tag along. Of course, I could only be in one place at a time, but I had Riviera and Gareth follow along with some of the other groups. I followed the group going to the guild to report on our expedition.

We got there without incident but the longer we stayed in the guild the worse my thumb began to ache. Something felt like it was going to go wrong. Very wrong.

Truth be told I always had this feeling around Rimuru. I figured if I could keep a close eye on him at the very least I could keep potential damage to a minimum.

Seeing what happened however made me feel naive. And now I have led her directly to the surface.

So I followed my instinct and that led me here.

I was still internally debating whether I should speak about Rimuru in the report. While logically speaking giving the guild information was probably for the best, they'd be able to help. However, there were a few problems that needed to be addressed. First I needed to confirm with Loki whether or not the guild was helping Levis. If that was a yes then things could get very dangerous with information on Rimuru.

If we were to assume that Rimuru is in league with Levis things just become even more complicated. Although I'm still hesitant to just group them together.

In the first place what concerns me most about Rimuru is the fact that she didn't whip us out. Unlike what the Levis's group has been trying to do. I have little doubt that she could do so if she so pleased, but she simply ran away.

In fact, knowing how Hermes is... I begin to think. I shake my head. Even if it was true it would be better to prepare for Rimuru to be an enemy. There's no guarantee she wouldn't hold hostility towards us after what happened even if Hermes was lying.

"Haaa." I let out a sigh despite myself. If only I could find Rimuru and confirm things for myself. I think to myself.

"!" As I wait behind the rest of the group I came here with something catches my eye.

A black haired female renard and a black haired human girl leaving the guild. As I lay eyes on the girl I bring my thumb up to my mouth and lick it.

I can feel my thumb begin to throb far worse then just about anytime it has before.

I can feel my heart begin to beat as everything fades from view.

Is this... Fear?

"Captin?" Rual asked.

The call of my comrades brings me back down to earth. I turn towards them with a smile and speak "Sorry something just came up, can you guys deal with the report?" I ask them

"Umm. but captain..." he seemed hesitant.

"As for the whole Rimuru ordeal... for now we'll keep it to ourselves. If it gets out of hand we'll report it." I decide. I still couldn't be sure whose side the guild was on. Once I could confirm that they weren't in league with Levis and the Evil's remnants I would be sure to report immediately but I didn't want to take any chances.

"Is that all," I ask.

They nod a little hesitantly, but I take that as a marker to go. The black haired girl was already beginning to leave the building so I needed to make sure to catch up.

"Thanks" I say to the group before leaving them behind to face whoever that black haired girl turns out to be.