After that, Esdeath actually got along rather well with Iskandar and the others.
Although her attitude when she rejected Iskandar earlier had been somewhat rude, Iskandar did not mind at all.
He was not like Gilgamesh.
He was not an arrogant person, so getting along with him was much easier than dealing with the Hero King.
This had already been clear back when he first met Lord El-Melloi II.
Even though the Master who summoned him had been somewhat useless, Iskandar had never shown any disgust toward him. Instead, he had taught him many things from the position of an elder.
If that had been Gilgamesh, it would have been absolutely impossible.
Even the relatively good-tempered Gilgamesh before them would never acknowledge a weak person as someone fit to lead him.
Back during the Holy Grail War, if the one Waver had summoned had been Gilgamesh, then he probably would have been scorned to death.
For a king, Iskandar's personality could be called broad-minded.
But if placed on an ordinary person, it would be closer to being somewhat carefree and thoughtless.
When he curiously asked about Esdeath's situation, she did not put on any airs either.
Instead, she spoke with him quite openly.
During this process, Gilgamesh also joined the conversation with interest.
Esdeath soon learned that the two men in front of her were extraordinary kings.
However, her attitude did not change because of that.
She was someone who liked to speak through strength. She was not the type to suddenly change her expression just because she heard someone's status.
There was no shortage of royal blood on her hands.
So when it came to so-called kings, she was not particularly impressed.
During the conversation, Esdeath made no attempt to hide her desire for Yuto.
That forceful, pure, and completely unpretentious attitude made both Iskandar and Gilgamesh appreciate her greatly.
Only Yuto, who was listening from the side, felt rather awkward and helpless.
A stunningly beautiful woman was openly expressing her interest right in front of him!
A situation like this...
Very few people could avoid feeling embarrassed.
However, in Yuto's heart, there was also inevitably a tiny bit of satisfaction.
That was a mentality no man could truly avoid.
Yuto could still keep his expression unchanged, but if it were an ordinary person, it would probably be very difficult to stay calm.
"Excellent! Frankly admitting one's desires is what makes a true person. This king appreciates you more and more! Fuhahahaha!"
Gilgamesh laughed joyfully.
One of the conditions for earning his recognition was "honesty."
This kind of "honesty" did not refer to the usual meaning of keeping promises.
Rather, it meant being able to accept and admit everything one pursued without shame.
"Exactly! All conquest and plunder exist for one's own desire."
Iskandar nodded in agreement as well.
"I will obtain Yuto sooner or later." Esdeath spoke very openly in front of the two of them.
Yuto shook his head helplessly.
Saying something like that right in front of him...Was that really okay?
At that moment, Rimuru and Ainz, who had been immersed in the game, suddenly took off their headsets.
This was truly something Yuto found a little novel.
"You're not playing anymore?" He asked in surprise.
"No, I just suddenly felt like eating something." Rimuru answered.
Yuto nodded.
For a moment, he had actually thought they were not planning to keep playing.
How could he have held such an unrealistic thought?
"Boss, please give me a grilled meat rice bowl. I don't know why, but while I was in the game just now, I suddenly wanted to eat that."
Rimuru spoke to Yuto in a somewhat lively tone.
He was a slime, so strictly speaking, he did not possess the feeling of hunger.
Even taste, as a pure slime, was not something he originally had.
Only after coming to the restaurant did the concept of "taste" appear.
That was why every act of eating Rimuru had done until now came entirely from his own love of food.
It was not driven by physiological hunger.
When Rimuru ate, he simply ate whatever he suddenly felt like eating.
Because of that, whenever he came to the restaurant, what he ate each day was different.
Yuto nodded and called directly toward Erina.
"Nakiri, one grilled meat rice bowl."
After hearing him, the girl stood up and headed into the kitchen.
In the restaurant, she had to listen to Yuto's orders.
Rimuru looked a little surprised.
"Boss, you're not making it?"
"What's wrong?"
"Eh— I still want to eat something made by Boss's own hands..."
Rimuru expressed his disappointment in an extremely humanlike way.
Yuto smiled faintly.
"Nakiri's cooking is excellent too. Don't doubt her."
"Last time... you said the same thing..." Rimuru muttered in a very low voice.
An ordinary person might not have heard it, but Yuto's senses were extremely sharp, so of course he heard Rimuru's muttering.
A slightly awkward look appeared on Yuto's face.
He knew Rimuru was talking about what had happened with Asuna last time.
Back then, in order to satisfy Asuna's wish to cook, Yuto had directly used Rimuru as the one responsible for eating the girl's dish.
Although Asuna's cooking had not been bad, compared with Yuto's...
It was still just a little lacking.
Yuto had not expected Rimuru to remember that incident all the way until now. ╮(╯▽╰)╭
Usually, Rimuru was always so careless and casual.
Why did he remember things related to food so clearly?
"Ainz, why did you stop playing too?"
Yuto looked at Ainz with some curiosity.
"Inside the game, Rimuru and I are in a party. It is better for us to log out together. Games are more enjoyable when two people play together."
"Eh? You two are in a party, then what about Fafnir?"
Yuto could not help asking.
"Oh, Fafnir's level is much higher than ours, so he is soloing."
There was even admiration for Fafnir in Ainz's tone.
Yuto froze.
He looked at Fafnir, who was still wearing the headset and immersed in the game.
Something stirred in his heart.
So this guy was actually a gaming genius?
This...
Was this what it meant to be a dragon?
How impressive!
"Yeah, yeah. Fafnir is so strong. Soloing a boss all by himself is amazing."
Rimuru also praised him sincerely.
For gamers, as long as your skill was good, you were worthy of admiration.
Clearly, at this moment, Fafnir had successfully earned the respect of Ainz and Rimuru.
Only, if one were to look into each of their identities, the situation would inevitably feel a little ridiculous.
Yuto could not help glancing at Lucoa and the others.
Lucoa had a helpless expression on her face, and Tohru was also covering her face a little.
"Fafnir is no longer the Fafnir he once was."
Kanna crossed her arms and spoke very seriously.
The dazed little loli looked especially adorable while doing that.
This made Yuto and the others unable to help but smile.
"Right, Yuuki, I saw that we weren't the only ones playing the game. There were other people inside too. Are those people arranged beta testers?"
Ainz was entering the game for the first time today.
When he saw that there were other players inside besides the three of them, he naturally felt curious.
Generally speaking, once beta testers appeared in a game, its public release was usually not far away.
"Yes. Aside from you, the company has also distributed some headsets for beta testing. I'm not sure about the exact number of people, but according to my father, it seems the public release will happen very soon."
Asuna answered with a smile.
"Good! Once the public release starts, I'm going to bully some newbies in there. Hmph, hmph, hmph... Hahahaha..."
The moment Ainz imagined himself using his current experience to crush new players in the future, he could not help laughing.
Right now, he actually looked a little like a terrifying boss monster.
Yuto felt rather helpless.
He truly had never expected that, as the leader of such an enormous organization, Ainz's ambition would simply be to bully newbies in a game.
"I heard from my father that Kayaba-sensei seems to have prepared some kind of surprise for the day of the public release."
"Eh! Really? I'm looking forward to that!"
"On the day of the public release, I absolutely won't be absent! I'll make the name Ainz Ooal Gown echo throughout SAO!"
Looking at Ainz and Rimuru, both of whom were full of motivation, Yuto sighed.
He had never seen these two show this much enthusiasm when talking about anything else.
This was really...
Unexpectedly fitting for their personalities.