“According to all of you, what punishment is fitting for the biggest criminal in this Netherworld?”

In the middle of the demon castle ruins, the leader of the neatly organized line of demons asked his minions.

When the demon horde heard the words “the biggest criminal in the Netherworld,” the intent to kill someone emanated from their bodies.

In response to their leader’s question, the demons shouted, “Kill!” in unison, pounding their hearts to make the ground shake.

Their target was a demon named Zero, who standing right in front of the neatly lined-up demon ranks.

Although Zero still wore a butler’s outfit, indicating his job as a private butler to the demon queen, his actual condition was that of a slave.

His butler uniform was torn everywhere, leaving stab wounds, cuts, and bruises exposed to the air.

His knees had already fallen to the ground, and his hands behind his back were tightly bound with magic handcuffs. Not only his hands but his entire body was shackled with magical chains, preventing him from rebelling or resisting at all.

Although Zero was curious about the magic chains that bound him successfully, his thoughts leaned more toward something else.

Somehow, the scene he was experiencing reminded him of the story of the French queen executed by the guillotine.

The reason he knew about Earth’s history stories was that he wasn’t just an ordinary demon. Despite his current demon body with horns and a tail, his soul was actually that of a normal human from Earth.

‘It’s been two years since I’ve been in this world using the name Zero without realizing it.’

His mind raced, recalling the early days when he had just arrived in this world.

The land he was in was called Netherworld, a place inhabited only by demons.

In the beginning, he had to suffer significantly upon entering this world. Life-and-death battles had become his daily routine. Luckily, not long after, he met Lilu... who became the demon queen.

As Zero was busy reminiscing about the past, the demon leader who had provoked his minions stepped forward.

The demonic aura of the demon leader was much thicker than the others. His demonic physical features, such as wings, a tail, and horns on his head, were also much more prominent than other demons.

Moreover, there was a black halo hovering above his head, making anyone think that he was a truly majestic creature.

‘Crowley!’

Zero muttered the name of the demon leader in his heart.

Unlike Zero, who was just a butler, Crowley was one of the Seven Demon Wings.

Zero was annoyed, but a calm expression with a smile still lingered on his face.

“I wonder how you can still smile in a situation like this. Do you still have the strength to fight? I’m sure not.”

“But this is quite surprising. I thought you could survive all this time just because you got protection from Demon Queen Lilu, but it turns out you have enough ability yourself.”

From the perspective of other demons, Zero was just a low-ranking demon sticking by the demon queen Lilu’s side.

They thought there was no point in the demon queen appointing Zero as a personal butler because she already had the Seven Demon Wings.

However, they were wrong if they thought Zero had no connection to Lilu’s success in the territorial unification war in the Netherworld, leading to Lilu getting the title of demon queen.

In reality, Zero was the one intentionally manipulating Lilu from behind the scenes. That’s why Zero asked to become Lilu’s private butler to stay close to her. In short, he was the shadow villain.

All of this came true because Zero knew some information about this world.

This world—Netherworld is very similar to the game he used to play on Earth. However, because he didn’t have enough power at the beginning, he had to rely on Lilu.

Of course, in the process, Zero managed to gather enough strength that he thought was sufficient to survive in the Netherworld. But who would have thought he could still end up in such a pitiful state?

“Before I execute you on the spot, I want to ask, do you know what crime you have committed?”

“....”

“Alright. I will state your crime clearly. You are a traitor to all the demons in the Netherworld. You wanted to kill Demon Queen Lilu so that we would lose our leader, right?!”

“Hahaha!”

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

Crowley’s accusation made Zero burst into laughter.

There were no wrinkles on Zero’s forehead, and there was no hint of anger in his eyes. He just looked up to meet Crowley’s eyes with a mysterious smile.

On the other hand, feeling that Zero’s laughter disturbed the hearing of the demons, the demons behind Crowley immediately hit Zero’s face and body.

Twacht!!

“Kuhh!”

However, even though blood started flowing from Zero’s head, streaming down his entire face, he just sighed a little without adding an exaggerated reaction or even showing a sad or desperate expression.

The mass beating from the demons ended when Crowley told them to stop and step back a few paces as if wanting to create some private space with Zero.

“Ptooyy!” Zero spat blood from his mouth before saying, “Regardless of your accusations, I have never betrayed you, let alone betray Lilu—it’s impossible... Well, because the demons never used their brains from the beginning, I think it’s very reasonable for them to immediately consider me a traitor if you say so!”

“Then, can you explain why you stabbed Demon Queen Lilu’s heart?”

“....”

This time, Zero couldn’t deny Crowley’s words.

Before he fought Crowley and his minions until destroying the demon castle, he had already done something that made him unable to refute Crowley’s accusation.

Indeed, he had stabbed Lilu’s heart. However, Zero’s mind at that time seemed to be controlled by someone else.

All he knew was that when he opened his eyes and his consciousness returned, his hand was holding a sword that pierced Lilu’s heart.

Lilu should have been angry and immediately killed Zero, but Lilu instead quickly left the demon castle with a face full of anger.

Only after Lilu’s departure did Crowley and his minions start attacking Zero.

“...No one else should have seen me stab Lilu’s heart. Did you manipulate my mind?”

Crowley smiled cunningly and leaned his mouth close to Zero’s ear, whispering, “What if I did?”

With a casual expression and unfazed by Crowley’s admission, Zero hypothesized that all the Seven Demon Wings, together with Crowley, were the ones planning this whole thing.

Their motivation?

The War of Harem.

The strange rumor spontaneously appeared and spread throughout the Netherworld.

Moreover, Zero was the only personal butler to the demon queen, so of course, he knew more information about what the War of Harem-themed rumor meant.

In short, the War of Harem happened because the Seven Demon Wings were competing for the position of Lilu’s husband.

Since the territorial unification war across the Netherworld led by Lilu had ended in sweet success, all demons began to wonder who would become Lilu’s partner.

While Lilu successfully led the territorial unification war, earning her the title of demon queen, she still needed a partner if she wanted to continue her bloodline.

In such a situation, each of the Seven Demon Wings felt they were the most deserving of being Lilu’s partner because they were the demon queen’s right-hand and the strongest demons in all of Netherworld.

Therefore, each of them began gathering more demon warriors or even secretly killing the subordinates of their respective rivals to reduce the combat strength of their opponents.

At least, that’s what was visible on the surface, causing many demon communities to assume they were engaged in the War of Harem. However, what actually happened was different. Rumors remained rumors.

Indeed, with the assumption that one of the Seven Demon Wings was chosen as Lilu’s husband, one of them would automatically receive the title of Demon Lord.

However, the absolute power would still remain in Lilu’s hands because Lilu’s individual strength far surpassed theirs.

Somehow, such realizations appeared in Zero’s mind. With such assumptions, Zero guessed that the death of the demon queen was a necessity for them.

“What will you do after all this? Will you start an open war with the other Demon Wings? Or will you divide the already united Netherworld territories among yourselves?”

“Hahaha! You don’t need to know about all that.”

Without much debate, Crowley raised the spear he held. He was ready to cleave Zero’s head in two. Or perhaps dismember Zero’s body into several parts?

‘In the end, I still end up dead even after surviving for two years in this rotten world, huh?’

Funny, right? Despite hurrying to make Lilu the demon queen so that he could live peacefully. But it turns out reality didn’t go as smoothly as expected.

Could he survive for two years only because he knew some information from a world similar to the game he used to play?

In the game he played when a character successfully united the Netherworld, the game would end.

So, after helping Lilu unite the Netherworld, he no longer had the advantage of information. Could it be that he wasn’t prepared enough for sudden events like betrayal from the Seven Demon Wings?

No, he was more than prepared. But somehow, his mind was still manipulated, and his power was even locked with the magic chains.

‘Is this all the work of the Seven Demon Wings? No. I think if it was just them, it would be impossible!’

Right before Crowley’s spear hit Zero’s neck, Crowley stopped his slash as if wanting to give hope to Zero.

However, the words Crowley uttered next successfully wiped the casual smile from Zero’s face for the first time, and a flame of anger ignited in Zero’s heart.

“Oh, by the way, even if you fail to kill Demon Queen Lilu, I will take care of Demon Queen Lilu after you die. So you don’t need to worry. Because your task is already done, it’s better for useless trash like you to disappear. Isn’t that right?”

Clech!

Zero bit his lower lip until it bled.

In Zero’s mind, he promised to avenge this even if he had to rise from hell—whether it was against Crowley or other suspects.

But, without a chance to unleash his anger, Crowley’s spear once again descended from above.

First, both of Zero’s hands, then both of his feet, until finally, the spear successfully severed Zero’s neck cleanly. The spear truly managed to separate Zero’s head from his body. Fresh blood didn’t forget to flow profusely from the severed neck.

Finally, his body collapsed, and his head rolled on the dirty ground.

[Your body is dead.]

[Congratulations, you have completed the hidden mission, ‘Survive Until the End of the Game.’]

[You are entitled to receive a reward.]

[Starting the Return process.]

[....]