I can't believe it's been 15 years since I started this...
Talk about a long-lived hobby.
Once it hits midnight, it's time to close the server
"Akira Oono"
and shut down the game once and for all.
You've done your fair share of spreading bloodshed and tears across the land,
Demon Lord of the Great Empire.
Goodbye, Kunai.
And good night.
It's a world abandoned by God...
A world that makes angels despair...
Please, don't be afraid. I need you to listen...
If you focus, you can surely hear it.
The midnight bell is always the tone which signals the starting of "you."
Wh-What the hell's this?!
Hmm?
That's a damn huge forest!
What's with these shoes?
No, it's not just my shoes... Since when did I dress like a Mafia boss?!
I've got a bad feeling about this...
Wha--?!
It's Infinity Game 's Demon Lord, Hakuto Kunai!
"Demon Lord" "Hakuto Kunai"
Open your eyes
Dwelling in the eyes of that majestic figure are wishes
Let's sing to the sleepless night
Dramatically pull everything in, even light and darkness
In order to smile again tomorrow, unafraid
I learned that true kindness is actually solitude after looking at you
I wanted to get closer to your heart and yet it's still so far away
No matter what fate gets in my way, I'll face it head on
With the bravery I chose with you, let's flap our wings and fly
My heart is trembling with the hope that I found
Resounding inside me move my heart
Lurking behind my hidden true motives
With a stronger gaze than anyone else
Dwelling in the eyes of that majestic figure are wishes
Let's sing to the sleepless night
Dramatically pull everything in, even light and darkness
In order to smile again tomorrow, unafraid
Let's begin
Open your eyes
"Demon Lord's Descent"
What are you doing here?
You're kidding me! Why the hell am I this old man?!
W-Wait, calm down...
I shouldn't panic just yet.
There's no way I'm stuck in a game of my own creation.
W-Wait... I know a quick way to find out for sure.
Administrator!
"Administrator Privileges"
Now we're talking!
"Please enter the password."
Just put in the password here...
"Hakuto Kunai" "You do not meet the requirements."
Huh? Does this mean it isn't the game world?
What now? I'd have read more light novels if I knew this would happen...
Huh? Is someone there?
I'm pretty sure Kunai was smug and sarcastic when he talked, right?
Uh, well, um...
Do you understand words, or what?
You have to run!
Huh?
Is this ugly monster a pet of yours or something?
You really ought to teach it some manners and how to behave.
Hurry up and run! It's a demon!
You feeble human, I'll feast on your flesh and blood!
Scary!
What the hell are you trying to pull?
I pretty much know the game's system inside and out, but...
...I don't recall making a monster like that.
The same goes for that girl.
D-Demon Lord, please don't eat me!
I'm not very tasty at all!
Are you kidding me? Who the hell do you think I am?
Hmm? We understand each another?
Relax. I'm not nearly hungry enough to resort to that just yet.
A-Are you serious?
Yeah, I'm serious.
Anyways, what's the reason behind you calling me Demon Lord?
B-Because... You defeated Greole without breaking a sweat.
If you're not an angel, you must be the Demon Lord the legends proclaim...
My name... is Kunai.
I've got nothing to do with a Demon Lord.
I-I see...
So? What's your name?
My name... is Aku.
The Demon Lord and Aku?
Aku?
Th-That's a very nice name.
And... let's see...
Have you heard of the country Japan?
S-Sorry, I've never heard of it.
This is the Kingdom of Holy Light where people revere the Cherub.
Kingdom of Holy Light... Cherub...
Yes. The monster just now had been sealed by the great Cherub in the past.
Beneath the Cherub are the Three Holy Maidens, the Holy Knights,
and an organization called the Holy Church too.
It's totally all stuff straight out of your everyday fantasy world...
But why summon a regular guy on the verge of getting called old like me?
Hmm? What if Hakuto Kunai was the one summoned here...
...and I just got dragged into it?
How about you clean yourself up?
Is that okay?
Why wouldn't it be okay?
I'll be waiting off in the distance, so wash all that muck off yourself.
Thank you, I will!
Yell for me when you're finished.
Okay!
To think there was such a pretty lake in the Forest of Wishes...
This is the first time in my life I've dipped in water this clear!
I'm so glad to be alive right now!
In any case, I wonder who in the world that person is.
Wh-What if he wants me to get clean before he makes a meal of me?!
"Administrator Privileges"
I can finally use administrator privileges!
Administrator?
Item file.
Wh-What's that?!
D-Do you think he's getting out his cooking utensils?!
Go on and use this bath towel and soap.
Huh? Is this that thing they call shabon ?
Shabon ? What's this, the Edo period?
Edo period?
Just forget it.
Just to be safe, I'm going to take a quick look around.
My skill points are dropping, and fast...
Just like Infinity Game , you must get points to learn skills through combat.
But how am I going to build points from here on out?
Making those trash items used 5 points, so I've got a bit over 30 left...
If this was the game, I should get more or less points based on
my level difference with the enemy.
D-Demon Lord.
Thanks for waiting. The shabon you gave me was wonderful.
I keep telling you, I'm no Demon Lord.
Anyways, do monsters like that last one pop up around here often?
O-Of course not!
If Greole showed up often, the whole kingdom would get demolished!
What? You're saying he's actually pretty dangerous?
Mm-hmm!
Hmm... Aku, do you know where his den is or where he sleeps?
I could use some more skill points to... Ahem!
I'd like to investigate a bit.
I heard Greole used to be sealed at the Wishing Shrine in this forest.
Wishing Shrine, huh?
Would you be able to guide me there?
A-All right.
Huh?
I'll carry you, so ride on my back.
N-No way! You don't want someone as filthy as me riding on your back!
Sorry, but I'm short on time.
I won't ask again. Hurry up.
Oh, come on! You're so against it that you cry? That really hurts...
For the longest time, I've been a nuisance to the village.
Which is why I gather all the village's garbage...
...and throw out all the human waste.
I've done the best that I can, but...
In other words, you do garbage disposal and water treatment, right?
It's a very important job.
But they... The villagers say I'm dirty and smelly...
And then, they finally cast me out as a sacrifice to Greole...
All the people in the village say they'll get dirty if they touch me.
That's why...!
W-Wait! Hold on! If you touch me...
Nobody would get dirty doing something like that.
With bodies like ours, all it takes is a wash and we're as good as new.
Thank you very much, Demon Lord.
Don't you think you're holding on a bit too tight?
I-I might be.
But this is the first time I've touched anyone like this before...
"Hakuto Kunai" "Race: Human" "Sex: Male" "Age: 45" "Height: 187cm"
"Demon King Greole" "Race: High Demon"
"Hakuto Kunai" "Aku"
Can you read this, Aku?
Wow! Demon Lord has pretty handwriting!
You can tell that these are letters?
Of course.
So you can read it then?
Hakuto Kunai... Aku...
One plus one equals two.
G. A. M. E. Right?
Yeah...
I'm not exactly sure the reason for it, but our languages must be the same.
It's safe to say we can communicate.
By the way, is the Wishing Shrine one of those places?
The kind where you toss money in and pray?
I'm not sure of all the details myself,
but using the power of the shrine, the Cherub managed to seal Greole there.
The shrine's power?
Yeah, that's right. Legend says it can grant the wishes of those who visit.
Occult, is it?
I-If you go to the shrine, you could obtain enough power to rule the world!
I don't want that power!
"Wishing Shrine"
This smell...
Aku, wait right here. It seems dangerous in there.
O-Okay.
So that's where the smell is coming from...
Bleh!
I see...
You're the Demon Lord, indeed.
"Idol"
I've granted many wishes thus far, but I believe this will be my last.
H-Hold up! What exactly do you know?
Was it you who summoned me here?
I suppose you could say it was those people, not me.
"We wish for the Demon Lord to descend."
These guys?
And what else? Did those guys ask you to summon Greole as well?
Greole broke the seal by his own power and revived.
He used the surrounding forests as his den...
...and demanded sacrifices from the nearby villages.
Sacrifices?
They wished for the Demon Lord's descent,
but Greole appeared in order to stop it from happening...
...and slaughtered all of those people.
Can you just return me to the world I came from?
I cannot grant that wish.
It defies a wish that was made.
Huh?! No, it doesn't!
However, as you are my final visitor, I shall grant you this.
Don't gimme this shit!
Having to wear a ring like this sounds more like a punishment to me!
I pray that your wish comes true...
I was once very pure and a sight to behold...
But many years of granting wicked wishes to humans changed me to this.
I pray that your... wish comes true...
What am I supposed to do with a ring like this?
How was it? Did you wish for anything?
Was it to rule the world after all? Or perhaps some form of debauchery?
Yoga! Yoga!
Ouch, that hurts! Please stop it, Demon Lord!
Aku, are there any large cities in the area?
There's the Kingdom of Holy Light's Holy Capital...
That's fine. Can you draw me a map or something?
D-Demon Lord! Does this mean you don't want me to come with you?
Hmm? You want to come along?
I-Is that a problem?
I mean, I can't just go home after being cast out as a sacrifice...
It might come in handy having someone from this world at my side...
Sure, why not?
Thank you very much!
Could we possibly swing by my village before we go?
It's not very much, but I have a few things.
All right.
In that case, let's get going, Aku.
It won't take long with your legs!
If the situation is bad enough to need sacrifices,
why hasn't the capital--rather, the kingdom done anything?
This area is far from the Holy Capital, so...
I see. We must be way out there.
Um, where do you come from, Demon Lord?
W-Well, from way out there...
The area around my village is all withered from Greole's curse.
Even the water under the soil is seething with poison.
That's why being able to bathe in clean water like I did before
is a luxury I've never had in my life.
Oh, Demon Lord! My village is just inside that fence.
My house is that way.
Stealth Stance.
"Stealth Stance"
Huh?
Player messaging feature.
"Message"
Message. Aku, can you hear me?
H-Huh? I hear Demon Lord's sinister voice in my head...
How dare you call it sinister!
Don't worry about me. Just know I'm nearby.
O-Okay!
Hey, trash face. What are you doing here?
Did you think you could escape and come back?
--You're garbage! --You pile of shit!
--Ow! --Take that!
Those bastards!
If they displease you, why not purge them?
I have the authority to dispose of any people you deem unbecoming.
What the hell? That's because it was only a game!
It's a curious thing you say...
That authority, Infinity Game , that system...
That twisted country was made by none other than yourself, was it not?
It's you who is the root of all evil.
If I'm a fiend who has purged over 4 million people, then...
...you are the one who leads the world towards total destruction.
I'm hearing things... I've got to be hearing things!
Take that!
Wh-Who the hell are you?!
D-Don't tell me you're one of Greole's underlings or something!
Please, spare our village! We already offered a sacrifice!
Aku, hurry up and get your stuff.
A-All right, Demon Lord.
D-Did you say Demon Lord?!
D-Demon Lord!
Aw, come on! Don't say stuff like that!
Trash face! You're screwing the village yet again!
Piles of shit like you should get lost! You're a plague!
Huh?
--My house! --The lord will hear about this!
Let's go, Aku.
R-Right, Demon Lord.
Sorry we couldn't get your things.
More importantly, was it all right to do all that?
D-Don't get me wrong. I was just warming the place up.
You might even say that was an act of kindness!
D-Demon Lord... Why would you rescue someone like me?
Don't say someone like you.
I think you're doing a swell job at living.
Don't let other people determine your worth for you.
Demon Lord...
What do you think? Did all that make you feel any better?
W-Well... I think I feel just a little better now!
Then let's get to this Holy Capital or whatever!
Right!
Thanks for letting me come!
"Super Top Secret" "Don't let xxx read this!!! Or even see it (lol) Akira Oono"
I wish I could go back
Is what someone said
But I don't have a past
For eternity
That nothing would change
Is what I thought
Over and over
Rubbing my eyes to make sure
I'm overwhelmed by emotion
Like a lie Bright! Still locked up
Hiding what I couldn't give up
That miracle lit up by my heart
Not sought out, not doubted
But still you believed
As if to teach me
RE NEW ME Now that I'm laughing with you
I can embrace it all
Once again
Taken to another world.
One Infinity Game player had this to say with a chuckle:
"These days, practically everyone is getting in on the 'another world' genre."
I'd now like to speak on behalf of all protagonists taken to another world...
"At least let me wipe my hard drive before I go!"
What's a hard drive?
"Golden Luna"
Next time: Demon Lord, Retry Episode 2. "Golden Luna."