Chapter 36 | I've Become The Demon King, For Real?

On the way to the city center, Lilith walked at a leisurely pace.

The low-level monsters hiding in the ruins, preparing to ambush her, dropped dead on the spot.

Lilith didn't even bother to look at the fallen demons.

Her gaze swept across the ruins lining the streets.

“Honestly...” she muttered under her breath, her tone laced with clear displeasure. “Does Veen usually just ignore things like this?”

She knew perfectly well that Veen likely wouldn't bother with these wild demons, but that didn't stop her from pinning the blame on her own Calamity.

Finally, she arrived at the central plaza.

This had once been the most prosperous area of the city, but now it was a complete mess.

The plaza had emptied out considerably. Most of the demons seemed to have finished their cleanup, herding large groups of human civilians away in a particular direction.

Only seven or eight Rank 4 demons remained on the scene. They were gathered in the center of the plaza, seemingly discussing something, their faces wearing the smug expressions of victors.

Lilith’s appearance did not immediately catch their attention.

Perhaps it was because she looked too harmless—there were no obvious magic fluctuations around her, and she carried no weapons. She simply stood quietly at the edge of the plaza, watching them.

It wasn't until one of the demons with goat horns happened to turn his head and catch sight of her.

He froze for a moment, his expression shifting slightly as he nudged the companion next to him with his elbow.

“Hmm? What is it, Baroque?” another demon with bone spikes growing from his back asked.

“Look over there...” Baroque, the goat-horned demon, pointed toward Lilith, his voice tinged with confusion. “When did a human get there? And a woman at that... Did our people not clear the area thoroughly?”

Several demons turned their heads to look at Lilith.

“Tsk, one that slipped through the cracks?” The bone-spike demon glanced over, unconcerned. “Probably hiding in some corner. She looks soft and delicate, doesn't seem like she has any combat ability. Capture her; maybe Lord Samael will take a liking to this kind of stock.”

“No.” Baroque frowned deeply, his eyes fixed on Lilith. “When did she appear? We didn't notice her at all just now! And...”

He took a deep breath, his voice dropping low. “There’s... a very strange aura about her. It makes me very uncomfortable. It’s like...”

“Ha? Baroque, did the battle just now scare you stupid?” another demon with scales covering his face mocked. “What kind of aura could a human girl have?”

“Shut up!” Baroque growled. He stepped forward a few paces, his gaze locked onto Lilith as he barked, “Hey, you! Human over there! Who are you? How did you get here?”

Lilith didn't answer. She simply began to walk, unhurriedly approaching them.

This abnormal composure caused the demons to cast aside their contempt, instinctively falling into defensive stances.

Anyone who could walk so calmly through this sea of corpses and blood was certainly no ordinary person.

The sense of unease in Baroque’s heart grew stronger. He raised his hand, a ball of flickering shadow energy condensing in his palm. Aiming it at Lilith, he shouted, “Halt! Answer my question!”

Lilith stopped about ten meters away from them.

She looked at these Rank 4 demons who were acting as if they faced a great enemy.

Then, she spoke.

“I am the Demon King.”

For a moment, the entire plaza fell silent.

The expressions on the demons' faces froze. They looked at each other, their eyes filled with bewilderment.

After a brief, deathly silence...

“Pfft... Hahaha!” The bone-spike demon was the first who couldn't hold it in, bursting into a fit of laughter. “W-what did she say? Demon King? Hahaha! She said she’s the Demon King!”

“Hahaha! Did you hear that, Baroque? This lady says she’s the Demon King!” The scaled demon also doubled over with laughter, pointing at Lilith with tears almost forming in his eyes. “This is the funniest joke I’ve heard all year! The Demon King? Her?”

“Demon King? Hahaha!” another demon pounded his chest. “If she’s the Demon King, then I’m the Demon King’s father! Hahaha!”

The laughter echoed across the empty plaza, filled with mockery and wanton derision.

Lilith stood there, watching them laugh with an expressionless face.

“Are you finished laughing?” Lilith finally interrupted them.

The bone-spike demon blinked, his expression souring. Being interrupted by a human made him feel displeased.

“I hope... you really are the Demon King.”

He bared his teeth, revealing rows of bone-white fangs. “Otherwise, you’re going to die a very miserable death...”

His words cut off abruptly.

Because his field of vision suddenly began to spin and plummet.

He saw the ground of the plaza, and he saw the suddenly frozen faces of his companions.

Finally, he saw his own headless body, still standing right where it had been...

“What... happened...” was his last blurry thought.

Then, darkness swallowed everything.

Thud.

The head rolled onto the ground, making a dull sound.

The headless corpse swayed and toppled forward, blood rapidly spreading beneath it.

The entire process happened so suddenly.

No one saw Lilith make a single move.

A Rank 4 demon had just lost his head, inexplicably.

The plaza fell into a deathly silence.

The remaining demons were all frozen in place.

Lilith’s gaze swept over them, finally landing on Baroque.

“Go call your leader here.”

“I... I...” Baroque’s teeth chattered and his legs went weak, nearly collapsing to the ground.

He suddenly bit the tip of his tongue, the sharp pain allowing him to maintain a sliver of clarity. He had no doubt that if he hesitated for even a second longer, it would be his head rolling on the ground next.

“Y-Yes! My lady!” He scrambled to turn around, crawling and then running at the fastest speed of his life toward the City Lord's Manor, not even daring to look back.

The remaining demons stood where they were, not daring to move a muscle.

The City Lord's Manor, tower balcony.

Samael was listening to a report regarding the preliminary mining plan for the vein.

Suddenly, his brow furrowed slightly as he turned his gaze toward the plaza.

“Hmm?” He sensed an extremely faint fluctuation, and... the sudden disappearance of several subordinates' signatures?

“My lord?” a demon noticed his strange behavior and asked.

Right then, the sound of panicked, stumbling footsteps came from the stairs.

“My lord! This is bad! Something has happened!” Baroque tumbled into the room in a mess, his voice cracking from extreme terror.

Samael turned around. Seeing this normally steady subordinate in such a state, he narrowed his eyes in displeasure. “What is the panic for? Speak clearly.”

“The p-plaza... there’s a... there’s a...” Baroque was incoherent. He pointed toward the plaza, his fingers shaking violently. “A person... she killed our men!”

Samael’s gaze sharpened. “Who? A survivor from the Blue Stream Mage Association? Or reinforcements from the capital?”

“N-No...” Baroque swallowed hard, struggling to organize his words. “It’s a... a young girl who looks like a human! She said... she said...”

“Said what?”

Baroque closed his eyes and used every ounce of strength he had to squeeze the words out from between his teeth.

“...She said... she is... the Demon King.”

The other demons in the room froze, their faces showing expressions of absurdity and disbelief.

Samael was also stunned for a moment.

Then, he suddenly burst out laughing.

“The Demon King?” His voice was filled with amusement and mockery. “Interesting... how very interesting. I find it hard to believe the Demon King would come to a place like this.”

He walked slowly to the railing and looked toward the plaza.

Though the distance was great, his powerful perception could already faintly capture the abnormal life signature that had appeared over there.

“Impersonating the Demon King and killing my men...” The curve of Samael’s lips turned dangerous. “Regardless of who you are, that kind of courage deserves a personal visit from me.”