Siegfried continued drinking and chatting with the Demon King, Baal. “Out of curiosity, what kind of life have you lived?” Baal asked, seemingly interested in Siegfried’s past. “My life’s story is not that interesting, my lord. It is simply filled with hardships and sufferings...” Siegfried replied. “It doesn’t matter. Besides, wouldn’t it be strange if the first human to become the demon lord has been living a comfortable life? Stories like yours have that suspense that makes one stand from their seat. So, go ahead, tell me your story, and satisfy my curiosity.” “As you wish, my lord...” Siegfried proceeded to share some of the things he experienced. “Oh? Kekeke! That’s it! That’s why luck is important! It doesn’t matter how powerful you are! If luck is not on your side, then you won’t reach the top! Even though I have gone through my fair share of troubles, I managed to survive until now, thanks to my luck!” Baal was extremely satisfied after hearing Siegfried’s story—no, satisfied was an understatement, as he was very invested in his life story. “So, that’s the life you lived? Hohoho! Marvelous! It’s truly fascinating!” Baal exclaimed. Just then, Baal’s affinity toward Siegfried skyrocketed. [Alert: Demon King Baal’s affinity toward you has increased by 500!] [Alert: Demon King Baal’s affinity toward you has increased by 500!] [Alert: Demon King Baal’s affinity toward you has increased by 500!] [Alert: Demon King Baal’s affinity toward you has increased by 500!] [Alert: Congratulations!] [Alert: Demon King Baal’s affinity toward you has risen from I Want To Get To Know You More to Deeply EmpathizeRelate!] Unbeknownst to Siegfried, the reason his affinity with Baal rose dramatically was simple. Baal, too, walked the same path Siegfried walked. He was born the lowest of the lowest demons, and he had to claw his way step by step until he sat on the throne as the Demon King. The fact that being born as the lowest of the lowest rank in an extremely hierarchical society like the Demon Realm was almost like a death sentence to anyone’s dream of climbing the ranks. However, Baal had not only climbed the ranks but also ascended to the pinnacle of the Demon Realm and claimed the title of "Demon King." The fact that he achieved all that despite his background was proof of just how grueling his life had been. Therefore, it was only natural for Baal to deeply empathizerelate withto Siegfried, who was apparently walking the exact same path he once walked. Perhaps that was the reason but... ‘He’s just like me. How can a human be exactly like me?’ Baal wondered while looking at Siegfried. He was starting to feel nostalgic about his younger days while looking at this new demon lord, who was walking the same path as he did. Baal’s gaze softened and— [Alert: Congratulations!] [Alert: Demon King Baal’s affinity toward you has been raised from Deeply EmpathizeRelate to My Cute Little Puppy!] His gaze turned into that of a grandfather looking at his beloved grandson.[1] “I’m really glad to have met you and that you ascended as a demon lord. I’m truly delighted that I gained a dependable junior like you.” “Thank you very much for your kind words, my lord.” “Oh? You’re humble too? Hohoho! Good! Excellent! I will be keeping an eye on you from now on, so I hope to see more from you.” “I do not expect to be of great help to my lord, but if my lord would give me the opportunity, then I will do my best.” “Oh, right. I hear things have been chaotic in your realm recently?” Baal suddenly asked. “I heard the angels have shown up and started causing a huge mess, haven’t they?” “Well, I suppose it makes sense. They haven’t been able to set foot there since the war, so I’m sure they’re furious at you humans,” Baal said nonchalantly. Then, he continued, “I’m guessing a great war will start soon. A great war where the angels, humans, and demons will be involved.” Siegfried said nothing in response and simply smiled. ‘I need to tread carefully. This is the Demon King I’m dealing with, and if I show even a moment of weakness, then... I’m dead,’ he thought. Just because Baal seemed fond of him didn't mean that he could afford to lower his guard. After all, he was dealing with the Demon King. No matter what he said, he would want to lay waste not only to the Celestial Realm but also to the Human Realm above. Siegfried was certain that his head would be severed from his body the moment he tried to convince Baal to stop the war or side with the humans to stop the angels. This text is hosted at novel[f]ire.net It was all because that would be uncharacteristic of a demon and would incur the wrath of the Demon King. “Well, yes. I foresee big changes from now on,” Siegfried replied with a smile. “I might entrust you with a task of great importance. It could be soon or maybe sometime in the future.” “There’s something like that. Just look forward to it,” Baal said with a sly grin. ‘Damn it... What is he plotting...?’ Siegfried grumbled inwardly. The fact that the Demon King was plotting something was already bad, but the fact that he had no idea what it was caused his nerves to tighten with unease. Siegfried’s conversation with Baal yielded him a lot of unexpected profits. “The test is over, and I, the Demon King, Baal, have officially recognized you as a demon lord.” “Huh? I thought my lord would give me a task to complete for me to prove my worth or something,” Siegfried said, tilting his head in confusion. “Why do I have to do all that?” “I can tell from your story alone that you have gone through all sorts of hardships. Anyone who went through what you did and survived is surely not lacking as a demon lord.” “And you’re so evil that you even made me, the Demon King, feel like I had to do more to even call myself a demon... Ah, the fact that you turned that demon called Hyungseokius into a living totem is just... I’m pretty sure psychopaths like you only appear once in a century.” “So, I won’t bother giving you tests or anything of that sort. You passed, Siegfried van Proa.” “T-Thank you, my lord.” Thus, Siegfried was officially recognized as a demon lord just by sharing his life story to Baal. “Still, the other demon lords won’t acknowledge you so easily. They will attempt to bring you down using your background as an excuse,” Baal warned. “I already have experience with individuals like them, my lord,” Siegfried replied with a smile. “I was shunned for being the first outsider that became a king, and people questioned my legitimacy as king just because of my background.” “Ah, yes, you did tell me about that. I guess those incompetent fools in power are the same no matter where you go.” “A wise observation, my lord.” “It will be no different here in the Demon Realm. Aside from Metatron, more than half of the eleven other demon lords won’t be so kind to you.” “Yes, I am aware of that, my lord.” “Those incompetent fools will use all sorts of excuses to bother you, and I won’t be able to help you.” “I am grateful for my lord’s concern for me,” Siegfried said with a bow. Actually, he was grateful that Baal easily acknowledged him without giving him any task or quest to clear. After all, a task or quest from the Demon King would be no walk in the park. Siegfried was glad that he did not have to do something so bothersome or difficult just to gain Baal’s acknowledgement. “You will be walking a path of thorns from now on, so you have my condolences.” “I do not think so, my lord.” “Hm? Even though the other demon lords will be getting in your way?” “All I have to do is make a lesson out of just one of them,” Siegfried said with a grin. “Oh!” Baal gasped in surprise. Then, he thought, ‘This guy’s a real piece of work, isn’t he? Why do I have a feeling he was a demon in his previous life? This guy’s more of a demon than any other demon I know!’ Rather than choosing to curry favors and earn the acknowledgement of the other demon lords, Siegfried decided to make an example out of one of them as a warning to the others. This was, without a doubt, the demon race's way of thinking—well, at least back in the day. These days, it was exceedingly rare to find a demon with Siegfried's tough mindset. With no ongoing wars against the angels and barely any conflict between the demon lords, the modern demon race had long since lost the fierce and ruthless nature they innately possessed. However, here was a demon lord—originally a human—displaying a mentality even more demonic than the demons themselves. “If I crush Dantalion and take his territory for myself, that would most likely scare the other demon lords into backing off, right? I mean, brute strength is the only thing that matters in the Demon Realm, is it not, my lord?” “Good. I will just take down one of them and make an example out of him,” Siegfried said with an evil grin. “Why stop at one? You could go for two, three, or even more, no?” “It is to preserve the Demon Realm’s strength, my lord.” “What?!” Baal gasped in shock. Not only had Siegfried proposed the perfect solution befitting a demon, but he had even taken into consideration the larger picture—preserving the Demon Realm’s military power. ‘T-This guy! He’s a demon by nature! He may have descended from another world as a human, but his very essence is unmistakably that of a demon! A guy ... I might’ve found my successor...!’ Baal marveled inwardly. [Alert: Congratulations!] [Alert: Demon King Baal’s affinity toward you has risen from My Cute Little Puppy to The Successor I’ve Been Searching for All Along!] Siegfried’s heart nearly stopped after reading the notification in front of his eyes. The successor Baal had been searching for all along? He couldn’t understand what kind of bullshit nonsense the system was spewing all of a sudden. ‘Don’t tell me... Is he thinking of making me his successor?’ Siegfried wondered. His back started breaking out in cold sweats after reading the notification. Meanwhile, Baal was smiling warmly and offering all sorts of praises to Siegfried. He was completely oblivious to what Siegfried was thinking right now. “Do you have any plans to take in a concubine? My daughter is quite renowned for her beauty among the demons—” “N-No, my lord! I have no such plans at the moment!” Baal even tried to make Siegfried his son-in-law, which made him break out into even more sweat. Siegfried started making all sorts of excuses for his own survival, and finally, thirty minutes later... “May I excuse myself, my lord? I still have to go gather materials to craft my relic,” Siegfried said with a bow. This was his last-ditch attempt to escape after Baal had spent the last thirty minutes trying to convince him to meet his daughter. His instincts warned him that he would be forcefully married to Baal’s daughter if he didn't escape this instant. “Is that so? Oh well, I guess there’s nothing I can do... Tsk,” Baal clicked his tongue out of disappointment. As disappointed as he was, he did not bother clinging to Siegfried anymore. It was all because... ‘Hohoho! I have plenty of time!’ Time was an almost infinite resource for the Demon King, so he knew he could take his sweet time trying to convince Siegfried to become his son-in-law. “Then, I will be taking my leave now.” “Go on your way. Ah, I will be looking forward to the things you do from now on.” “I will not disappoint you, my lord.” Right after Siegfried's departure... —He ran into Dantalion, who was waiting outside the door. “Why the hell are you here?” Dantalion growled, not even bothering to hide his hostility. His hostility was reasonable, as Siegfried had countered his every move so far. Whenever he planned something, this pesky human would always appear out of nowhere and drive a wedge through his plans. At this point, it was safe to assume that they were each other's archnemeses or something in their previous lives. “Oh? Hello, this newbie demon lord, Siegfried van Proa, greets His Majesty, Lord Dantalion,” Siegfried greeted with a smile. “Hm?” Dantalion grimaced at the greeting. Then, he questioned, ‘Is this bastard high or something? I’m pretty sure our relationship isn’t so good for him to be smiling at me...’ “Why are you acting so polite toward me? I’m pretty sure you should harbor a grudge at me, no?” Dantalion asked. “Not at all, my lord! Why would I harbor a grudge at you? Far be it from the truth!” Siegfried exclaimed, his eyes wide open. “Our paths merely clashed due to the circumstances, but I swear upon my title as demon lord that I harbor no grudge against my lord!” “Ah, I was about to pay my lord a visit.” “I have heard that Senior Lord Dantalion was the wisest among all of my senior demon lords, so I wished to seek some advice and maybe a few businesses I could do in the Demon Realm from my lord.” “No, to be honest with my lord... The fact that I have caused losses for my lord, whether unintentional or not, has been bothering me... Now that my lord is here, may you kindly forgive me for my past transgressions against you?” Siegfried said with a bow. Right above his head, the title, "Despicable Treacherous Retainer," flashed brightly. [Despicable Treacherous Retainer] [A title given to those who excel at currying favors with those more powerful than them.] [Effect: +25% Success rate when currying favor with NPCs.] Siegfried started working on Dantalion using his title, "Despicable Treacherous Retainer." 1. In Korean culture, grandparents call their grandchildren cute puppies... for some reason. ☜