“...So waste management, right? That’s an important job.”
“Everyone always said I smelled bad... That I was dirty... So they finally decided that I would be the sacrifice for the devil...”
Aku chuckled, still tearful. The Demon Lord didn’t know much about this village, but this wasn’t right, as far as he could tell. This child was forced to do the dirty work of village, just to end up as a human sacrifice?
“Everyone in the village says... that I taint whoever I touch, so...”
It seemed like little more than grade school bullying to the Demon Lord. He was truly speechless. Grabbing Aku by the neck without a word, he forced the child onto his back.
“W-Wait! If you touch me...!”
“You think you can ‘taint’ someone that easily? Doesn’t matter how dirty you get, just take a bath. Good as new.”
“...!”
“But where is that Shrine...”
The Demon Lord stopped short, as the child’s muffled crying began.
(Woah, the kid’s crying for real! Wait. Don’t I just look like a kidnapper, now!?)
If someone would have walked up to them now, they might infer that the Demon Lord was kidnapping a crying child. This would have surely led to an arrest if there were a police-like entity in this world. Although, being arrested for kidnapping on the first day after being sent to a fantasy world would have made for a unique plot twist.
“Are you okay... Touching me...!?”
The Demon Lord contemplated how to answer this for a moment. From what he had heard so far, he assumed that everyone around Aku had always called the child filthy and tainted. In the modern day, this psychological abuse would have lead the child straight to a life of depression, or, worst case scenario, even suicide.
“Aku, you called me the Demon Lord, didn’t you...? Do you think the Demon Lord is so fragile as to be tainted by someone like you?”
He couldn’t help but blush before his tongue could dry. That came out cornier than he had hoped. If anyone who knew him would have heard, he would not have lived it down for at least a decade.
“No... I don’t think so...!”
Aku relaxed, and seemed to put more weight on the Demon Lord’s back. Of course, the Demon Lord’s ridiculous body could have carried a semi truck with his pinky. A child’s body, to him, was as light as a feather.
“Thank you... Master Demon Lord...”
Aku’s soft body was held close to his back. The Demon Lord could smell the pleasant scent of soap from behind him.
“...Aren’t you holding on a little too tight, there?”
“I-I don’t think so!”
Aku
Race: Human — Age: 13
* * *
Item Soap (made in the Empire)
Even though bars of soap in this world are made with primitive methods and ingredients, nobles, aristocrats, and prostitutes pay big money for them, making them scarce in the open market. Soap created by the nation with supremely advanced technology, the Empire, is sublimely crafted down to every bubble. There’s really no comparison.
Item Bath Towel (made in the Empire)
The Empire was obsessed with implementing artisanal details to every product imaginable. Even a simple bath towel was embedded with all sorts of technological enhancements. This towel has a softness that begs the question: “Hey, did you get a new fabric softener?” along with unparalleled absorbance.
Armor Plain Clothes
Its Defense stat is nonexistent. However, this was relatively well-made attire in the village, making Aku a little more presentable to the King of Devils. Some of the less fortunate members of the village could only afford hemp clothes.
* * *
Level: 1 — HP: 10/10 — Stamina: 20/20 — Attack: 1 — Defense: 1 — Dexterity: 1 — Magic: 1 — Magic Defense: 1
* * *
Aku’s hair is only long in the front, enough to cover the entire left half of the face. This wasn’t done out of fashion, but because Aku’s left eye is green due to heterochromia, a trait that definitely exacerbated the bullying. Aku’s parents both died of illness when Aku was young, solidifying the ostracization of the child in the village.
The Shrine of Wishes
A long-haired man was carrying a young child on his back. That description could fit for an ordinary father and child, but this man was not ordinary in the slightest. His hair was black, which was a rare trait in this world, not to mention that it was as long as a woman’s. To boot, he was clad entirely in black. Some would only think of a devil or Death upon seeing him.
“The Shrine of Wishes, was it? So, what? Do you throw some money in there and pray or something?”
“I don’t know much about it either, but I’ve been told that the Wise Angel used the strength of the shrine to seal away the King of Devils.”
Hearing this, the Demon Lord mumbled ‘That’s some voodoo.’ He was expecting the shrine to be something similar to Shinto shrines, but that didn’t seem to be the case. Phrases like ‘the Wise Angel’ and ‘Devils’ didn’t mean much to him, either.
Akira Ono, the man trapped in the Demon Lord’s body, had no particular interest in religion, almost to the point of atheism. If Hakuto Kunai were asked what God meant to him... he would answer ‘I am God.’ Neither character seemed at all suited for surviving a fantasy world. If an inquisition or the like were to take place, they would be the first to be thrown into the pyre.
“I’m starting to doubt there’s anything there worth looking for...”
“O-Of course there is! Legend has it, the shrine grants the wishes of those who visit.”
Aku said, tightening their arms around the Demon Lord’s neck. The Demon Lord was walking with incredible speed. He assumed the child was holding on tighter to keep from falling off, but there seemed to be another reason.
“I-I’ve never, um, been so close to someone.”
Aku said, burrowing into the Demon Lord’s back. Upon hearing this, the Demon Lord raised a brow.
(I still have no clue if this kid is a boy or a girl...)
“I-If you go to the shrine, Master Demon Lord, I think it will grant you powers to conquer the world or something!”
“Nope! No, thank you!”
His façade of maturity was beginning to crumble with every line of conversation with Aku, but now, they had finally arrived at their destination. In an even more remote corner of the forest that was already sparse of humans, in a large, rocky hill, there was a gaping cave.
(Dude, this smell...)
Noticing the stench as he approached the cave, the Demon Lord scrunched his nose.
“Aku, wait here. It might be dangerous in there.”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
The source of the stench soon became apparent. A pile of human corpses were strewn about in the cave. Some looked torn apart with giant claws, some were torn to bits, and others were burnt to a crisp. Combined with copious amounts of blood drained from them and the feces spilling out of their guts, the stench was stinging.
(What is this, a black magic ritual?)
The Demon Lord jeered, but he was also surprised at how calm he was in the midst of so many bodies and such a stench. The normal reaction would have been to panic, surely. In contrast, the Demon Lord remained unmoved facing the tragedy in front of him. In fact, he even felt a sense of familiarity, somehow.
(Where have I seen... a sickening sight like this before?)
His attempt for recollection was met with a heavy fog on his mind. There was no reason he should have come across such a sight during his ordinary life. He brushed it off.
(Maybe I saw something online.)
Nowadays, a quick search online can pull up endless imagery of dead bodies. One could even browse painful scars of war with the press of a button.
(Whatever. The bigger problem here is that thing over there...)
A stone statue stood among the corpses as if to gaze down upon them, carrying a vile air around it. The Demon Lord would not
have been surprised if this statue had moved on its own to kill these people. The name ‘Shrine of Wishes’ was so far off from this sight.
When the Demon Lord took another step forward, the eyes of the statue glowed red. Instinctively, the Demon Lord reached for a knife, but the statue remained motionless. In fact, it seemed to be observing the cave’s latest intruder. Impossibly, the statue opened its mouth, and murmured:
“I see... You really are the Demon Lord.”
“...Huh?”
“I have granted many a wish, but I fear this will be my last.”
“H-Hold on a minute... How much do you know? I’m getting a feeling that you’re the one who summoned me here.”
The statue remained silent for a while before speaking again. Its response was incredibly significant for the Demon Lord, but it didn’t seem to carry the same weight for the statue.
“Not I... These humans, here. ‘Summon the Demon Lord,’ they said.”
“These guys...? Did they summon that monster out there, too?”
“That one resurrected itself with ease... Because of that creature, my powers are nearly depleted.”
“Depleted... Then, send me back to my world before it’s all gone.”
The statue’s answer was simple.
“I can’t.”
The Demon Lord clawed at his head at the terribly conclusive tone.
“Why not? You want money? An offering or something? Don’t tell me to offer you human flesh like these guys here.”
“Those were killed by Greole, King of Devils. I can not grant a wish that contradicts a wish.”
The summoning of the Demon Lord was wished and granted... The statue seemed to refuse any wish that would negate another, like sending Akira back to his own world. In a way, it was honorable.
“Still, I expect you to be my last visitor... I grant you this.”
A menacing ring materialized out of the statue, and flew onto the Demon Lord’s finger. A perfect fit. Seeing the heinous design, he tried desperately to yank it off, but to no avail.
“What the hell!? Walking around with this thing on my finger would be torture!”
“I hope that your wish... May be granted...”
“You stupid, false god... Hold on a second!”
“Even I was pure in the beginning... Ages of evil wishes changed what I am.”
Those were the last words of the statue before it crumbled. Turning into sand, it spilled off of its pedestal. The Demon Lord couldn’t do anything but watch. He sighed.
“What am I supposed to do with this ring?”
Looking at the ring on his right middle finger, the Demon Lord sulked. It seemed impossible to take off, no matter how much his powers grew, and no matter what tricks he tried. Everything about it seemed like a cursed item, right down to its design.
“Administrator... Analyze Item.”
The analysis would make the Demon Lord sulk even further. If it was an item with a curse on it, he was planning to take it off with a curse-breaker.
“How is this treated like a normal item...? And it took SP to analyze, too...”
The woes of the Demon Lord continued. This was turning into the Shrine of Sighs.
Once he exited the cave, Aku asked ‘How was it?’ with a smile on their face, but the Demon Lord remained stern-faced.
“Did you wish to conquer the world? Ooh, or maybe for a paradise of women and liquor?”
Hearing this, the Demon Lord wrapped his arm around Aku’s neck in a headlock. Then, he started throwing some light punches at the child’s head, mimicking a certain character from a certain fighting game.
“Yoga! Yoga!”
“Ow! Ow! Please stop, Master Demon Lord!”
† † †
(What to do... Maybe I should find a town or something and gather more information?)
Flipping his long hair back, the Demon Lord contemplated. There was just too much that he didn’t know and didn’t understand. Unless he remedied his lack of knowledge about this world, the Demon Lord feared, he might fall into some pitfalls that would be otherwise avoidable. It was time to leave the remote forest.
(Especially since I couldn’t find anything off of those bodies...)
Just remembering that bit made him queasy. The game was filled with bodies, but naturally, seeing them for real was a completely different experience. The Demon Lord figured that, if that King of Devils was the culprit, it was for the best that he eliminated the creature. If left alive, that monster might have left mountains of corpses in his wake just by existing.
“Aku, are there any big cities around here?”
“Yes... But could we stop by my village first? It’s not much, but I do have some things there.”
“Hm? You want to come with me?”
“C-Could I...? Um, since I was made a sacrifice, I can’t really... go back and live there... Um...”
The Demon Lord nearly banged his head at Aku’s plea, but it didn’t seem like such a bad idea on second thought. He knew nothing about this world, after all. Having a resident of it by his side could come in handy. Besides, from what he could discern so far, sending Aku back home would only cause the child harm. Traveling together would be a win-win.
“Sure. Let’s stop by your village first. Is it close?”
“Oh, thank you! You would get there in no time, Master Demon Lord!”
Once again, the Demon Lord carried the child on his back.
The Demon Lord was mumbling things like ‘What am I, a kangaroo?’ but Aku wore a smile, and seemed rather happy.
(While we’re at it, I should get some questions out of the way...)
Along the way, the Demon Lord tried asking all sorts of questions. They both spoke Japanese, and he confirmed that Aku could read the Japanese text, numbers, and alphabet letters on his notebook. He couldn’t tell if there was some sort of translation filter, or if the inhabitants of this world spoke Japanese to begin with.
“Well, if we can communicate, that’s fine with me. I’m too old to start learning a second language. Let alone a language of another world.”
“...? Your writing was so neat, sir, it was easy to read.”
True, the writing in the notebook was meticulous. In accordance with his backstory as a high-ranking government official, Kunai’s writing resembled that of a master calligrapher.
“But human sacrifice, huh...? That’s pretty medieval. Is that a common practice around these parts?”
“The King of Devils was resurrected a few years ago, and started wreaking havoc all around the area... They decided that each village would take turns offering a human sacrifice.”
“I don’t get it... You said these villages were part of a nation, right? Wouldn’t the national government do something about it? I bet they could have hunted it down.”
“We’re very far from the Holy City...”
In other words, these villages seemed to be in the countryside, far enough away where people in the big city didn’t care much about them. The Demon Lord recalled news stories from Japan that took place in remote islands or villages in the secluded countryside that were dying off from lack of offspring.
“Um, where did you... come from, Master Demon Lord?”
For a moment, he wasn’t sure how to answer this. ‘Japan’ surely wouldn’t suffice, and ‘the Empire’ would make even less sense. The Empire only existed in the world of a video game created by Akira Ono, and wasn’t real, after all.
“W-Well... Let’s just say I’ve come a long way.”
The Demon Lord deflected the question and quickened his step.
He was sure that no one would believe him if he told the truth. Best case scenario, they would call him a madman.
“Oh, Master Demon Lord. There’s my village. Over that fence.”
“That one, huh...?”
The Demon Lord was a little nervous of the fact that he was getting used to being addressed as such, but what he saw beyond the fence was even more nerve-wracking. Not quite
a ghost town, but more of a decrepit village that would be well-suited as the setting for a horror story.
The Demon Lord’s Ring
Even though it was still light out, there was no hustle nor bustle in this village. The Demon Lord thought it resembled a closed-off village deep within a mountain range in Japan.
“I’m expecting them to tell me that they can’t trust outsiders or something.”
“W-Well... Most people in my village don’t like visitors.”
(Really...? I was just judging by the cover.)
The Demon Lord was hoping that the villagers might even spare him some food or change, but that seemed out of the picture now.
“My house is this way. It may be unpleasant, but please forgive me... I won’t take long.”
Aku climbed off of the Demon Lord’s back, and started walking with a limp in their right leg. Watching the child limp away, the Demon Lord began to feel sorry. Perhaps Aku never had access to proper medical care.
As he followed Aku, he observed the village, still on guard. Not that he expected any different, but he couldn’t find any traces of modern technology.
(Housing built of bare wood and compacted mud... Some straw roofs, even.)
No sight of air conditioning units or satellite dishes, which were, of course, ubiquitous in Japan. This was just another confirmation of how distant this world was from the one he was familiar with. As he looked around every corner, he began to notice some villagers in the distance, here and there. The instant the Demon Lord spotted a villager looking at him, he reflexively hid. In the game, no good ever came from being spotted by other characters. It was kind of an occupational hazard, at this point.
“Change Fighting Stance... Stealth Stance.”
With this command, the Demon Lord’s appearance blurred, as if to melt into the background. In the game, this stance would dramatically reduce the chance of being spotted by enemies. In exchange, the stance also reduced the character’s Attack and Defense stats considerably.
Seeing that he was concealed, the Demon Lord sighed in relief. He was a little nervous inside, but judging by the reaction of the people around him, it seemed like no one could see him anymore. It was getting scary how similar everything was to the game. The Demon Lord wondered if this world... manifested every aspect of the game. He decided that he should put this theory to the test.
Demon Lord, Retry! Volume 1 Page 3