It’s been roughly 500 years since that damn Hero punched a hole through my heart.
That Hero bastard must have thought I was dead by now. I outlived his not-even-100-year lifespan and returned to the dirt.
I’ve stayed asleep all this time, storing up power so I could awaken again, but that life ends now!
“I have returned!!!”
The Demon King Reinhild, who plunged the world into terror 500 years ago, has resurrected to drench this world in darkness once more.
“Huh?”
Expecting the world to quake at the news of his return, Reinhild burst into human territory… only to panic.
The world had changed drastically from what he remembered 500 years ago.
Why is there a Sword Master over there…?
Back then you could spend a lifetime without ever seeing one, but now a Sword Master showed up once an hour.
Uh… a 6th-circle mage…?
He even spotted, if rarely, mages who’d reached the 6th circle, once said to be forever out of human reach.
“…”
The world had changed.
For Reinhild, humans had grown too strong.
Far, far too strong.
So the Demon King decided to crawl back to the cave where he’d been sealed for 500 years and lie low.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Hello.”
“Xion! Come in. I’ve been waiting.”
Root was a tiny village on the outskirts of the Audrit estate, far from the capital.
Xion, a farmer who grew a wide variety of crops there, had come to see Rebecca to sell his produce.
He arrived just as the roosters began to crow, well before sunrise, yet Rebecca greeted him cheerfully.
Rebecca’s father handled the distribution of Root’s produce to nearby cities; Xion’s visit was for that.
While Xion stacked sacks and crates in front of the house, Rebecca lingered, sharing every bit of news her father had brought from the city:
What games the nobles in the capital were playing, what feats famous mercenaries had accomplished, what songs the bards were singing.
Nothing special for city folk, but in news-starved Root it was riveting.
When Xion still showed no interest, Rebecca pulled out a story no one could ignore.
“Right. Did you hear, Xion?”
“Hear what, exactly?”
“A divine oracle came down. The Demon King has resurrected!”
“Ah, is that so.”
Thud—
Even with such news, Xion calmly set the last sack of potatoes on the ground.
Then he flashed Rebecca a brilliant smile.
Sun-kissed brown hair that seemed almost golden, deep blue eyes, a dazzling grin—Rebecca nearly swooned.
“O gracious God, thank you for letting me be born in the same village as Xion.”
“Pardon?”
“Nothing at all! The Demon King might be back, but he’d never bother with a tiny village like this, so don’t worry. Just enjoy your day.”
“Then I’ll happily get back to work as usual. Thanks for the news, Miss Rebecca. Please handle these again.”
“Ah, wait. I wanted to chat a bit more… He’s already gone. So fast.”
Rebecca sighed as Xion’s figure receded.
More diligent than anyone, Xion worked from dawn till late every day.
He disliked interruptions; unless he was delivering crops or collecting payment, conversation was hard to get.
Whether he knew her disappointment or not, Xion silently headed to his fields.
Meanwhile rumors of the oracle spread, villagers whispering excitedly.
“Did you hear? A prophecy came down.”
“The Demon King’s back! The Demon King!”
“They say the Hero is recruiting companions. Think someone from our village could join?”
“A farming village like ours? Get to work.”
Yet everyone brimmed with anticipation.
They weren’t welcoming the Demon King nor were they afraid.
A Demon King rarely targeted villages this small, and when he appeared, the God sent a Hero.
That Hero, a shard of the divine who would defeat the Demon King and become the era’s light, was why the villagers were excited.
Some even dreamed the Hero might visit Root. Hosting the Hero’s party would be an honor beyond compare.
A few young men swung brooms like swords, fantasizing they might be recruited.
“Demon King, huh.”
Xion murmured, a faint smile on his lips.
He farmed as usual and returned home at dusk. It was a neat, cozy house perfect for living alone.
After a simple supper of cabbage soup, steamed potatoes, and mutton shared by the shepherd, Xion descended into the cellar.
On the far wall of the spacious underground room hung a single sword, its blade stained crimson.
“At last.”
Xion’s voice trembled.
The day he had awaited had come.
The Demon King was back.
❖ ❖ ❖
“I’m going to lose my mind.”
Reinhild was in a dreadful bind.
He’d planned to hide in his sealed cave and live as if dead but the damn God issued an oracle.
News of his resurrection was proclaimed to the entire world in the quickest, loudest way.
The Demon King has appeared! Join forces and slay him.
“Is He messing with me?”
As the supreme deity, God surely knew humans were now far too strong for Reinhild.
Even without a Hero’s party, his life was as fragile as a glass fish.
That oracle basically told him, “Hey, Demon King, time to die. Wash your neck and get ready for the afterlife.”
Damn God.
Damn oracle.
If a new, era-worthy Demon King had risen, fine. But this relic was crushed by a Hero and slept for 500 years.
No time to gather power, no training… just summon a Hero right away?
“Maybe He’s annoyed I’m still alive?”
The world had rewarded the Hero’s party, thinking the Demon King slain; learning he’d lived 500 years would sour anyone’s mood.
Still, this was unfair.
Where’s the sportsmanship? Sending a Hero after an unprepared Demon King?
“If I meet the Hero… I die.”
Despair loomed, but he had no time to wallow.
“First: run.”
The Hero periodically received the Demon King’s location.
Five centuries ago, humans weren’t so threatening. He could sit in his castle and shoo them away. Discovery meant nothing.
Not now.
Today’s humans, even the Hero’s dog, could kill him.
It wasn’t that he’d grown weaker. Every other living thing had grown stronger.
He had to flee.
Resolute, Reinhild left the cave and within ten minutes stopped dead.
Where do I go?
Nowhere came to mind.
The Demon King’s castle, his home, was untouched by humans, the safest refuge.
Yet he hesitated.
“A Demon King has pride. I don’t want to be seen like this.”
Among demons, strength was everything.
Born their king, he had to be mightier than all.
What if the demons have grown strong like humans?
Weakened, he had no dignity and didn’t want to be remembered as a scorned king.
Even so, a king fleeing humans…
Grrr-rrrrr—
“A monster?!”
Startled, Reinhild spun at the tension behind him. The cry alone threatened him. Surely it was a fearsome beast.
“A bear?”
To think he’d tensed up over a mere bear. Any demon who saw would laugh for ten nights.
Just a bear…
KUAAOOO!
“Waaah!”
Offended at being ignored, the bear reared and charged.
Reinhild ran, dodging its claws as trees split beneath them.
That was no ordinary bear.
One hit… he’d die.
“Huff… pant… whew…”
After a long sprint he escaped and realized:
Humans growing stronger wasn’t the only problem.
His mana was gone.
“This can’t be.”
The vast power that symbolized the Demon King had run dry.
No magic with barely any strength to run.
Maintaining his barely living state for 500 years had consumed it all.
With no mana, he could do nothing. Not even flee ordinary wildlife.
Dignity meant nothing now.
Survival came first.
Meet the Hero? Death.
Be exposed as the Demon King? Death.
Bandits on the road? Death.
Hide and do nothing? Starve to death.
Only one choice remained.
“Fine. Let’s head for the Demon King’s castle.”
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