Chapter 269

[16th Round] Don't Save My Life

"Ha?!"

Not knowing how to respond to the MAX-Class Demon Lord's greeting, the Female Hero stepped back.

She lowered her gaze to her exposed navel, and her face immediately flushed as she screamed like a child.

"What's wrong with my pelvis?!"

"Hero! This arrogance is unwarranted! How can you proudly display such a pitiful sight?"

"Hic!"

Unable to refute my words, she hid behind the broad back of the handsome man standing next to her.

However, the most important virtue of a hero was bravery!

I was looking forward to this moment since she was the first guest to visit me, and she did so just ten days after the start of her journey. Unfortunately, it seemed I had set my expectations too high.

▷ Race: Human

▷ Level: 185

▷ Job: Hero (Experience 500%)

▷ Skills: Attraction Z, Sword Mastery Z, Charm Z, Strength E Dexterity E...

▷ Status: Humiliated, Magic Sword

The reason she was able to get here in such a short time was well expressed in her stats.

Her Z-rank Attraction and Charm skills.

With those skills, all she had to do to raise an army was approach powerful male mercenaries and tell them, "Please help me."

But that didn't mean that I looked down on her.

Only ten days had passed since the 5th curriculum began.

It didn't matter if they were in primary, secondary, or tertiary education courses. Most of them were still wandering around like Sieg, unable to immediately adapt to the greatly changed curriculum.

Compared to them, she progressed far faster. Regardless of her means and methods, it couldn't be denied that she won "first place."

Having Z-rank Sword Mastery was no joke, either.

In my 1st round, I had no Z-rank skills. Based on that alone, I could already deduce she was well-versed in combat.

She was a hero that couldn't be ignored despite her narrow pelvis.

Unsurprisingly, my prediction wasn't wrong.

▷ Type: Report Card

▷ Name: Reina

▷ Combat Strength: S

▷ Achievements: B

▷ Reputation: E-

▷ Personality: B

Her grades were pretty good.

She could have graduated immediately or transferred to a secondary education course if not for her reputation, which was graded E-.

"Hero, your reputation is as insignificant as your pelvis."

"How do you know?!"

I couldn't tell her I was looking at her report card even though I already knew why she had a low reputation.

▷ Type: Personal file

▷ Name: Reina

▷ Alignment: True neutral

▷ Main quality: Beauty

▷ Experience: 275 years

▷ Record: 6

▷ Overall rating: Skillfully uses her innate talents and appearance. Taught by her father, her fencing skills had already reached high levels at a young age. However, she has a tendency to take away other people's men that she liked, which is the reason behind her poor reputation. Until the strange student appeared, she received the most attention.

In the past, I also received attention.

My sympathy for her slightly increased.

"Pedonar was not like that..."

It hadn't been long since I took over as Demon Lord, but she was already comparing me to my father-in-law.

My slightly increased favor of her dropped again.

"You need to be on your guard. The Demon Lord's mental attack is dangerous!" Said one of the handsome men, pulling a sword from his belt and glaring at me.

Among the companions who followed the Hero, he was the man with the most solid armor and the most handsome face. He had broad shoulders and impressive muscles, which made a good impression.

I estimated his age to be a little over twenty years old.

Hey. He looked more like a Hero!

Out of habit, I first checked his stats.

Externally, I was calm, but deep down, I knew my body was fragile. I was just controlling a clone of mine, after all.

Hence, I needed to assess the strength of the enemy beforehand... Hmm?

▷ Race: Chaos Human

▷ Level: 653

▷ Job: Brave (Everyone = Level 1)

▷ Skills: Swift Blade S, Chaos S, Duel A, Destruction A, Vitality A...

▷ Status: Arrogant, Prideful

An unusual race.

Chaos.

Some of my senior's companions shared such a race.

The power of Chaos, capable of withstanding the system and interfering with skills, came from him, and I had benefited from it as well.

Who was this man?

Judging by his job, there could only be one conclusion.

Nothing else crossed my mind.

"You are a descendant of the Fake Hero."

The First Hero's younger self definitely fell by my hands.

There was no fierce battle. He rested peacefully with the dragons that impersonated humans and elves.

That only made the individual's existence in front of me even more unexplainable, though.

He had Brave, my cruel senior's unique job.

Unless he reincarnated, then him being his descendant was the only remaining explanation.

"He's not fake!"

"You're not like him at all."

My senior, of course, was uglier than me, whom the inhabitants of Fantasy found the cutest, but he was still a little more handsome than his successor.

I supposed I could call him Descendant A.

If the First Hero diligently spread his genes before dying, then Descendant B and Descendant C probably also existed somewhere on the continents of Fantasy.

And there should be quite a few of them, too.

If they inherited his omnivorousness, which allowed him to copulate with any beautiful woman regardless of their race, then they had probably already expanded their bloodline quite well.

"I will make you pay for that insult right here and now!"

TSSSS!

After his statement, he activated "Brave."

The levels of everyone around him dropped to 1.

It had a fatal flaw, however. Even the caster themselves fell under its effect. However, it didn't matter if they're outnumbered and confident in their natural talents.

I took a look at the stats of the copy I was managing.

▷ Race: United Spirit of Fantasy

▷ Level: 1

▷ Job: Demon Lord (Hero → Level ↓)

▷ Skills: Dark Energy (Z)

▷ Status: Demon Sword

The moment I was resurrected as the Demon Lord, the final boss, my clones already had their levels set at 999. Thanks to the "sponsorship of the universe," a racial trait of the USF that my duplicates also replicated from my real body, just breathing was enough for them to gain experience.

Now, however, the level of the copy I currently controlled had dropped to 1.

Naturally, I felt my body lose most of its energy.

"Hero! If you attack now, you'll easily defeat the Demon Lord!"

"Yes! Grant me your power!"

Frightened and hiding behind the handsome man's back just a second ago, the Female Hero decided to demonstrate the sneaky power of love.

"Keep it up!"

"Forward!"

"Yes!"

Her other companions had skills far from the Female Hero and Descendant A. They were all on the level of an average mercenary, probably because she recruited them based on looks rather than skill.

Without first collecting any information, that was the limit of the power she could gain from the Dumpling Kingdom.

However, there was a reason they managed to break through Grand Duke B.

Although she was my "first guest," she was the hundredth in the order of the Demon Lord's invasion of the castle.

Those who came before her were all defeated by Grand Duke B before they could even open the doors to my throne room, resulting in their immediate death or retreat.

Grand Duke B served as an excellent filter.

With "Brave" among the enemies' ranks, though, the narrative changed.

Even for my father-in-law, such a drop in level was fatal, not to mention ordinary demons.

In addition, Grand Duke B fought alone.

The Hero's dastardly companions attacked him with the cowardly force of friendship, like hooligans in an alleyway.

Fighting against Brave was dangerous.

However...

SLAP!

I lightly brushed off the back of my hand, and the head of the handsome man, who was the first to attack, exploded like a watermelon.

"Huh?"

"What?"

"How..." The Hero and his good-looking companions energetically rushing towards me immediately slowed down, their shock evident in their expressions.

"What's with the face? Never seen a Demon Lord kill a person before?"

I was disappointed! They were treating me like a herbivore!

Normally, I was an empathetic creature that loved flush toilets and respected Master Mollan, but I was also Demon Lord Parmamon, who happened to be the apex predator.

"Brave! The Demon Lord's Power..."

"He's definitely Level 1!"

"Then what was that?!"

"I don't know."

Descendant A and The Female Hero had a briefing amid the battle, regardless of whether I heard or not.

"Uneducated pigs..."

I had to teach them a lesson.

Although I became the Demon Lord because of my father-in-law, my righteous heart didn't change.

My sweetness and body were missing, but my soul and will were still intact.

As if to prove my point, the wings of the righteous hero proudly unfurled behind me.

FSHUKH!

"H-hic?!"

"Ah!"

"God..."

Stunned by the greatness of my wings, they took the time to express their awe, not realizing that they were in a critical situation.

They had to pay the price of their negligence.

FSHUK! FSHUK! FSHUK! FSHUK!

Demon Lord's Justice!

Those who encroached on my life deserved to die as many times as there were capillaries in the human body, but that would be too rude to my very first guest.

"I will spare your life."

Oh! I was not fit to be the Demon Lord!

I couldn't let go of the MAX-Class Hero's righteous soul that was within me. I should be removed from office...

FSHUK!

One of the sharp thorns protruding from the wings of the righteous hero lightly pricked another handsome man in the eye.

Fragments of his beautiful eyeball splattered along with his blood!

He still had one more left, so such a wound shouldn't interfere with his future.

"Aaaaaaahhhhhh!!!"

"Excellent. You used to look like a common bully, but now you look like a real mercenary who's fought wars. Girls like that."

I pushed the guy I turned into an actual warrior through plastic surgery and moved on to my next target.

"H-hik?! Have mercy... Huh?!"

"Do not worry."

The Demon Lord was merciful!

I hit his beautiful jaw lightly.

I removed his teeth that interfered with kissing women. I left his molars intact, though, so he wouldn't be limited to only eating porridge.

What more mercy did they need?

"You are a vile demon..."

"Well, yes. I am."

Didn't they know?

My father-in-law didn't give me his job so that I could play the role of a clown.

I looked at another handsome man.

Bang!

Why did he collapse and lose consciousness?

Did he just break into someone else's house to take a little rest?

"Gosh. So rude."

CRUNCH!

I stepped on the ankles of the collapsed brute so that he could never stand again.

Even a good-natured Demon Lord like me had a limit. When visiting, guests should behave accordingly.

"So, who's next?"

"N-no!"

"We can't win this!"

"He's too strong!"

The mercenaries immediately betrayed love and friendship. There was even a dog among them who decided to mark his territory by relieving himself on the floor of someone else's house.

Horrible...

"Ugh... But I will still spare you."

I was probably the most pathetic Demon Lord in the universe.

***

From the moment Descendant A activated Brave, the entire battle lasted only a couple of minutes.

I was delayed so much because I was interviewing them.

As expected, the position of Demon Lord didn't suit me.

"Sorry, Hero!"

"We have no choice!"

"Aaaahhhhh!!!"

"Hero... I'm sorry..."

Following the command they received from me, the handsome mercenaries kicked the fallen Female Hero.

Her clothes were ripped and covered in blood due to the one-sided violence of her companions.

But that was okay.

Her precious life was safe. No one besieged the "gates of her castle," and I promised to let her go.

"You are a foolish hero who only appreciates external beauty. The power of love and friendship is like a spine, you see. Even a small offset on it results in dire consequences!. Make sure you carve the pain you're feeling right now in your pelvis. Only then can you become stronger. I give you that advice not as the Demon Lord but as your senior.

Now she could understand how insignificant love and friendship were.

"..."

However, the Female Hero, whose expression was devoid of life, didn't even respond.

She might be angry now, but she would one day thank me.

At least Descendant A, who seemed like a real hero, replied to me.

"I swear allegiance to Demon Lord Parmamon, the demon of despair, the destroyer of hearts and humans..."

He was reborn as the "Demon Brave," filling the void left by Grand Duke B, who was killed by the vile power of love.

"Oh! Finally, a reply from mother!"

I stared at the screen of the Hero's beautifully decorated smartphone.

I hastily went to check what my mom said.