Inside the quiet Demon King’s castle.
“Baby, are you asleep?”
Void, the Demon King notorious for his wild and unpredictable nature, was poking the chubby cheeks of a sleeping baby dragon.
“Mmm… Uuum…”
The baby dragon squirmed, making small noises.
“You’re too adorable.”
Enchanted by the little dragon, the Demon King became completely captivated, turning into its prisoner.
“I just want to pop you in my mouth and ‘nom nom’ you up.”
“Ah, maybe my own child will be like this someday.”
Void, who had never been interested in romance, let alone having children, suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to raise one when looking at Minho.
“Nom.”
In the end, Void put Minho’s cheek into his mouth.
He didn’t use his teeth—just his lips.
“So soft and squishy.”
Even Void himself had no idea what he was doing.
But it didn’t take long for him to snap back to reality.
“Void… what are you doing?”
“What?!”
Because one of his subordinates had caught him in the act.
When Void came to his senses, he found himself in a verbal spat with a woman alongside his subordinate.
“…What’s the problem?”
“Oh, it’s just nostalgic~ You were so cute when you were younger. Now you’re all sharp and scary.”
“Ah! Shut up! Do you have a death wish?!”
“Not scared of you at all anymore~”
Actually, to be precise, it was Void who was being teased.
Kind of cute, really.
“…
…Ahem, anyway. What are you planning to do with that kid?”
Hearing the woman’s voice as she stifled a laugh, my body, which was pretending to sleep, flinched.
“Dispose of me? Me?”
Honestly, I might be embarrassed to say it, but how could they talk about disposing of someone as cute as me, even if I am just a lizard?
“I thought you said you’d kill it. Why’d you bring it back? We even had the funeral preparations ready.”
“Why don’t you say something?”
“…Dispose of it.”
I already knew they wanted to kill me, but this was the first time hearing they’d prepared a funeral.
What a risky situation for me.
Pretending to sleep, I focused on the voices of the two women.
At first, it was just amusing banter, but soon it became tense, as if their words could kill.
The cold air brushing against my skin made me tremble with fear.
The heavy atmosphere made breathing so difficult that pretending to sleep became a chore.
I thought of trying to use my charm skill on the woman.
[Current Skill: Charm is on cooldown.]
[Time remaining until reuse: 16:42:15]
‘Darn it!’
I could only despair.
With no choice, I tuned into Void’s voice.
“…Because.”
“…What?”
What was that? I couldn’t hear properly.
But it seemed like the other woman did, judging by her trembling voice.
“What did you just say?”
“Why.”
Void’s cold response made the woman shudder.
“Are you seriously saying that? Have you finally gone mad, Demon King?”
“You’re noisy.”
-Thud.
“Agh, gah!”
“…I’ll just do whatever I want.”
There was a sound like Void had struck the woman, and after that, she struggled to catch her breath.
“Ugh…”
“Why are you defying me? Do you think I’m someone you can cross?”
Curious about what was happening, I rolled over in my pretend sleep and opened one eye slightly.
[A narration about Void being overprotective of you comes up, stating he promises to protect you.]
‘Oh, he’s surprisingly kind.’
Feeling a little relieved, I glanced over at Void.
“Did you forget how lenient I’ve been?”
“How could you… do this to me… gah…”
“You’re nothing.”
Void stood still, yet the purple-haired woman struggled to breathe as if she was in unbearable pain.
“I don’t need anything.”
“…Air, I can’t breathe…”
“I’m going to live the way I want. Neither my race nor fate can hold me back.”
“…Do you think the other Demon Kings will let you get away with this?”
What could she have said earlier to lead to this?
Even as she looked like she was dying, the woman glared at Void with murderous intent.
“Just a pathetic little creature.”
“Even if you go to the council… do you think they’ll accept you?”
“I don’t care.”
After saying that, Void gripped the apple in his hand tightly.
-Crunch, crack.
“Ack?! Stop… please…”
“Ahh! Spare me!”
The tighter Void’s grip on the apple, the more the woman seemed to suffer.
The more the woman writhed in agony, the more Void’s lips curled into a smirk.
Inside the quiet Demon King’s castle.
“I’ve always hated you.”
“You dare try to defy me, even though you’re my creation?”
“I- I’m not your creation.”
“No, you are.”
Void smiled as he gently stroked the cheek of the woman, who was drooling, her eyes unfocused as she struggled to stay conscious.
“You look like you’re on the brink of death.”
“I think… this is my second favorite thing in the world.”
The woman could no longer speak, only gulping for air.
Void glanced absentmindedly at the partially crushed apple in his hand.
“Do you want this to remain intact?”
Void spoke as he fixed his gaze on the woman in front of him.
The woman, lying on the floor with her head pressed down and hips raised awkwardly, gasped for air as she drooled uncontrollably.
Void lifted his chin to meet her eyes.
“Show me a little more, will you?”
“Here, take this apple.”
The woman’s lifeless eyes drifted toward the apple Void held out.
“Do you want it?”
“…”
“No answer?”
A single tear slid down the woman’s cheek.
“Why? Why can’t you answer?”
“If you don’t answer, I won’t have a choice.”
Tears began to stream steadily from the woman’s eyes.
“Now, I’ll just leave this here. Watch closely, okay? If you don’t watch, I’ll be upset.”
“Who knows? Maybe this apple will become whole again.”
Void’s cracked, slightly excited voice echoed through the Demon King’s chambers.
The woman’s dead eyes followed the apple as Void placed it on the ground.
The apple, now smeared across the floor with its juices seeping out, was pitiful.
-CRACK!!!!
-SQUISH.
Void crushed it mercilessly under his foot.
“Ah, such a shame.”
“A…ah…”
As apple flesh and juice splattered onto the woman’s face, she let out a faint groan of despair.
Moments later, she turned to ash and vanished completely.
Total annihilation—when a demon disappears entirely without the possibility of resurrection, they turn to ash.
‘This is insane.’
[A narrator whines about how scary the Demon King has been lately.]
Quiet, old man. I’m already terrified to death.
As I was thinking that, Void stumbled toward me with an empty gaze.
“…I killed again.”
“…I killed them again.”
He muttered to herself, his dead eyes staring into the void.
Then, he whispered softly to me.
“I’ll send you home. I’m sorry.”
He kissed my forehead and draped his cloak over me.
“Dragons are sensitive to temperature. I’m sorry for leaving you in the cold.”
Then he lay down beside me, gently patting me.
Something feels off about this.
Still, the drowsiness overwhelmed me, and I lost consciousness once again.
This cursed baby body—it’s impossible to fight the sleep.
-Chirp chirp chirp.
-Babble babble.
-Splash! Splash!!
The noisy sounds of nature filled the air.
A pleasant breeze brushed against me, and a soft chuckle escaped my lips.
And before my eyes—
“Ah, you’re awake!”
There stood Void, grilling dozens of fish like a wilderness survival expert.
…What?
Why is the sky so blue? Why is the grass so lush and vibrant?
“Hehe, eat this.”
Void, wearing a sleeveless black dress with a roughly cut, short skirt, handed me a fish.
His hair was tied up in a ponytail, and his arms and legs were damp.
He looked completely different from yesterday’s cold and terrifying aura, handing me the fish with a bright smile.
At this point, it’s honestly a bit scary.
“Uh, sister?”
“You’re calling me sister now?”
“Wh-where are we right now?”
“Oh, I was taking you home.”
Void said this casually, adding that he thought he’d stop by the capital to meet an old friend on the way.
“…Also, I’m being chased right now. Hehe, they’re calling me a traitor.”
“…Oh, I see… wait, what?”
“Yesterday, I kind of dealt with someone important? Hm.”
His words trailed off mid-sentence.
Void started muttering to himself.
‘Saying I killed them feels a bit much… maybe just… erased?’
‘No, erased sounds too edgy. The kid might hate that.’
‘Ugh, what do I say?’
He still hadn’t noticed that I’d seen everything.
“Anyway, I fought someone important! Ahahaha. And then when I tried to bring you here, everyone started chasing me!”
“So, I just… got rid of them all. Well, at this rate, I might as well go live somewhere like the Unified Dragon Kingdom.”
Wait, does he mean he wants to apply for asylum?
He’s the nemesis of the Elder Grandfather and the kidnapper of the princess?
…Would that even work?
I glanced at Void nervously, but he just smiled brightly with his eyes closed, completely carefree.
“What about the hero’s leveling up?”
“It’s progressing steadily.”
“You’ve heard the rumors, haven’t you?”
“…Yes, the rumor that the dragon princess has been kidnapped.”
“We’ll use that. This is the perfect chance to deal with the demons.”
The human empire began forcibly leveling up the hero, taking advantage of the dragon princess’s abduction.
“…Is this really okay? We’ve never pushed this hard before.”
“So what?”
“It could break them.”
When the young wizard expressed his concern, the older wizard scoffed.
“Who cares? Heroes are expendable. If they die, it’s fine—we all grow stronger together as a species.”
“We just use them because they’re a bit special. If they die, we can summon another one.”
Still, the young wizard looked uneasy.
“But what if there’s backlash from the church or something?”
“The hero is already mentally unstable, and the frequent use of enhancers isn’t helping.”
The older wizard gave the younger one a sharp glare, as if he were looking at something pathetic.
“Just do as you’re told. It’s not you suffering, so keep quiet.”
“…Understood.”
“Now, let’s get started. Watch carefully.”
At that moment, through the glass, a woman was brought into the room.
“Begin.”
-Aaaaghhhhh!!!!
Bolts of magic-infused lightning struck the woman, and status notifications began flooding her vision.
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
The level-ups only stopped when the woman lost consciousness.
“Tch, it’s already over?”
“Any more and it could threaten her life—”
“Increase the intensity tomorrow.”
“…No, we can’t!”
“If you disobey, you’ll end up like her.”
The older wizard pointed at the trembling, breathless woman, and the younger wizard lowered his head, silent.
“Hypocrite. Just take care of the hero properly.”
“…Yes, sir.”