The Demon King subjugation party entered the Demon King's Castle.

They made their way forward without encountering a single obstacle. It was hard not to find that suspicious.

Luna, the one in charge of the operation, came under suspicion.

“My, my. My prophecies have never been wrong. Today is definitely the best day to defeat the Demon King. Maybe she took pity on her subordinates and gave them the day off—that would explain why there’s no one guarding the place.”

The elf big sister offered a joking explanation without a hint of panic.

“Heh. Since we’re already here, even if we don’t defeat the Demon King, I’m taking something valuable home with me.”

Sarah muttered under her breath, her golden eyes sweeping the surroundings.

“With everyone here, we’re sure to win!”

Liliya clenched her little pink fists and quietly cheered the party on.

“……”

Hero Xiya said nothing. She continued to lead the way deeper into the Demon King's Castle, searching for the legendary Demon King.

The castle was spacious, but its layout wasn’t complicated. There were no traps, either.

The subjugation party made it to the hall without a hitch.

According to legend, the Prideful Demon King waited here for the humans who came to defeat her, then crushed them and broke them in body and spirit.

The hall was silent and deserted.

The throne stood empty. The so-called Prideful Demon King was nowhere to be seen.

“Where is she?”

Xiya swung her greatsword. A fierce blade of energy cleaved the Demon King’s throne in two.

Meanwhile, Luxiu was fast asleep, a glistening thread of drool even hanging from the corner of his mouth.

Without the Demon King’s power, he was just an ordinary human boy. Apart from his looks, he had no special talents at all.

He had no idea danger was closing in.

The subjugation party began a thorough search for the Demon King.

What was bound to happen would happen.

The subjugation party arrived outside the Demon King’s bedroom.

“Do you think the Demon King kidnapped some pretty human boys and is busy having her fun with them?”

Sarah speculated with a hint of disdain.

“The Demon King is so mean.”

Liliya’s cheeks flushed as she worried she might see something not meant for children.

“I just used my prophetic ability. The one inside is the Demon King, who calls herself the strongest, fiercest, and most evil of all. Everyone, brace yourselves.”

The elf big sister warned her companions.

“Bam!”

Xiya didn’t waste words. She raised her shapely leg, clad in a black boot, and kicked the bedroom door open with brute force.

They filed inside.

“Huh? What?”

Luxiu had been sleeping soundly when the sudden commotion woke him.

The boy, dressed in thin pajamas, instinctively sat up in bed and stared at the subjugation party, bewildered and annoyed.

“Don’t be afraid. Tell me, where is the Demon King?”

Xiya assumed the outrageously handsome boy was a victim, so she asked him where the Demon King was—with the Demon King right there.

“What a heartless Demon King. To think she’d torment such a cute boy.”

The money-loving mage Sarah gripped her staff, ready to fight at any moment.

“Poor thing.”

Seeing the boy on the bed with the same hair color as her own, Liliya was overcome with sympathy.

“Something’s not right.”

Luna, the prophet, used her ability again. Her expression gradually turned strange.

“Afraid? You’re the ones who should be afraid! You’re standing before the Great King himself—now get on your knees!”

Still grumpy from being woken up, Luxiu seemed to have forgotten that he’d lost the Demon King’s power. He stood on the bed, looking down at everyone, and arrogantly blurted out who he was.

“Huh?”

Xiya, Sarah, and Liliya couldn’t connect the boy in front of them with the Demon King at all.

“What do you mean, ‘huh’? Are you deaf? I’m the master of this castle. I am the Demon King.”

Luxiu saw that their faces showed confusion, not fear, and stomped his feet in anger.

“Do you think the Demon King tortured this boy until he went mad?”

Sarah asked her companions. She simply refused to believe the Demon King was a boy.

In this world, men were naturally a disadvantaged group. The idea that they couldn’t even lift a finger had become a stereotype.

Among the demonfolk, only succubi were male. They relied on their good looks, and no one had ever heard of a succubus becoming the Demon King.

“Legend says the Demon King is enormous— a full eight feet tall—and wears black armor. Little guy, are you all right?”

Liliya looked at the boy with sympathy, thinking the Demon King had broken his mind.

“……”

Xiya still hadn’t raised her greatsword. She remained silent, but she didn’t believe the weak-looking boy before her could be the Demon King, either.

“You fools wouldn’t know greatness if it hit you in the face.”

Luxiu was thoroughly annoyed at being treated like a weakling by a bunch of humans.

He was known as the Prideful Demon King. You could imagine how much he valued his pride—he’d never stoop to scraping by on the strength of his deceptive appearance.

“Everyone, don’t be fooled by his appearance. See the crown floating above his head? That’s the Demon King’s Crown. He’s definitely the Demon King.”

Luna was the only one who believed Luxiu was the Demon King. She pointed it out to the others, with sound reasoning to back her up.

“The Demon King’s Crown?”

Everyone looked at the top of Luxiu’s head and saw a dim, strangely floating crown hovering above it.

“Heh. You’re not completely hopeless, fat woman.”

At last, his identity had been acknowledged. Luxiu was delighted rather than angry, and he deliberately lifted his chin to look more imposing.

“Fat woman? You little Demon King brat are asking for a beating.”

Luna’s expression froze at the unheard-of insult. Her ample chest heaved violently.

“You… really are the Demon King?”

After hearing the prophet’s explanation and seeing the Demon King’s Crown on Luxiu’s head, Xiya raised the greatsword that had slain countless monsters.

But Luxiu’s appearance was so deceptive that even she, ruthless as she was, couldn’t bring herself to attack right away.

“Big Sis Xiya, how could the Demon King be a boy? There must be some mistake.”

Kind-hearted Liliya still couldn’t accept that a boy who looked even younger than her could be the Demon King. She tried to talk Xiya out of it.

“He looks so weak. There’s no way he’s the Demon King who defeated so many Heroes. Maybe the real Demon King put that crown on him. Luna, you must be mistaken.”

Sarah also thought Luxiu was just a victim. If they rescued him, they might even get a handsome reward.

“How many times do I have to say it? I am the Demon King! If you have what it takes, then bring it on. Stop blabbering!”

Luxiu looked thoroughly impatient as he asserted his identity yet again.

He stuck out his chest and even secretly rose onto his tiptoes, trying to look taller. But at just 1.6 meters, there was only so much he could do.

“You’re both demon and human. To be precise, you’re a hybrid—the child of a succubus and a human. That’s why the Crimson Moon’s influence made you lose your powers. I finally understand what the prophecy really meant.”

The elf big sister put the clues together with the wisdom she’d gained over several hundred years, and finally figured out what was going on with Luxiu.

“I’m a demon, the strongest, fiercest, most evil Demon King! I’m no hybrid! Fat woman, you’re dead!”

Luxiu’s secret had been exposed in front of everyone. Burning with shame and anger, he charged at Luna and swung a fist at her face.

“You little Demon King brat, you’re awfully bold. You’ve lost your powers, and you still don’t know when to quit.”

Luna stayed calm and cast a simple nature spell. Vines appeared out of nowhere on the floor and bound Luxiu before he could land a punch.