Day 1: The Hero Party's Miserable Failure (A Week of Absolute Despair)
In the grand halls of the Imperial Palace, the Hero Party sat slumped over a long table, their expressions those of warriors who had faced the greatest, most insurmountable foe of all.
Bureaucracy.
It had been one full week since the Demon Lord Fujino Tetsuya had—against all logic and narrative structure—retired. Just quit like a minimum-wage worker walking out of a bad shift. And in those seven days, the kingdom had been thrown into complete and utter chaos.
And not in the way they had expected.
They thought a new Demon Lord would rise immediately. Maybe an apocalyptic power struggle between the demon generals? At the very least, some mid-tier villain would try to seize control.
Instead?
Nothing.
No one.
Just silence.
Day 2: The First Realization
Loraine Lionheart, the great Hero chosen by destiny, stood in the Royal Court before the Emperor himself. Her golden hair shimmered in the divine sunlight streaming through the stained glass windows. Her silver armor was radiant, glistening even after countless battles—because Loraine refused to let grime touch her holy aesthetic.
She raised a fist, her red cape billowing majestically behind her.
"Your Majesty! Do not fear!" she declared. "We shall face this new threat as we always have! No matter who takes the Demon Lord's throne, the Hero Party shall stand against them!"
The Emperor, a wise and regal man, slowly turned to his royal advisor.
"Who… is the new Demon Lord?" he asked.
The advisor adjusted his glasses, flipped through some documents, then cleared his throat.
"…No one, Your Majesty. There is no new Demon Lord."
Silence.
Loraine blinked. "Wait, what?"
"It seems," the advisor continued, "that Lord Fujino was… self-employed."
Another long pause.
Loraine's eye twitched. "You're telling me there was no system in place? No automatic succession? No Demon HR Department?!"
The advisor coughed. "Er… no. Apparently, the demon empire functioned entirely because he willed it to. Since he left, the entire structure collapsed overnight."
Loraine staggered back as if she had been physically struck. "You mean to tell me… that for three years, we weren't fighting a highly organized evil empire—"
"We were fighting one overworked guy and his awful minions, yes."
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Her sword clattered to the ground.
Day 3: The Hero Party's Replacement Hunt (Complete Disaster)
"Alright, team!" Loraine slammed her hands on the war table. "We can't afford to be without a Demon Lord! We need a new one!"
"…Why?" Jelani, the dark-skinned assassin, leaned back in her chair, flipping one of her daggers effortlessly between her fingers. She was so close to just walking away from this nonsense.
"Because if we don't have a Demon Lord, then what's the point of a Hero Party?!" Loraine shouted.
The horrifying realization washed over them.
Their entire careers depended on the existence of a Demon Lord. Without him, they were… jobless adventurers. Just another overleveled group of misfits with no purpose.
Aurelia, the saintly healer, clutched her hands together in silent horror. "Oh, dear… if we don't have a Demon Lord… then what will happen to all the prophecies?"
"That's what you're worried about?" Jelani groaned.
Sirael, the elf mage with extra assets and glasses, pushed her spectacles up the bridge of her nose. "Logically speaking, without a central villain to create conflict, we are left in a state of narrative stagnation. In other words… the plot has collapsed."
Loraine slammed the table again. "WE HAVE TO FIX THIS."
Thus began the worst recruitment drive in history.
The Candidates for New Demon Lord
Candidate #1: Some Random Demon General
Loraine and the party stormed into the ruins of the former Demon King's Castle. A lone demon general sat there, drinking tea and trying to look unbothered.
"You there!" Loraine pointed dramatically. "Take the throne!"
The demon dropped his teacup. "W-WHAT?!"
"We need a new Demon Lord! Congratulations, you're hired!"
The demon general physically recoiled. "NO THANK YOU. LORD FUJINO TREATED US FAIRLY! WE NEVER WANTED TO RULE! ALSO, I HEARD WHAT YOU DID TO THE LAST ONE!"
"…Fair."
Candidate #2: The Evil Sorcerer From the Eastern Wastes
"You there!" Loraine called out to the ominous-looking sorcerer in a black robe. "Would you like to become the new Demon Lord?"
The sorcerer laughed maniacally. "FOOLS! DO YOU THINK I WOULD SIMPLY—"
"Good, you're hired!" Loraine clapped her hands.
"WAIT, WHAT?! I HAVEN'T FINISHED MY EVIL MONOLOGUE—"
"Congratulations!"
Three days later, he fled the country.
Candidate #3: A Random Villager
Loraine grabbed the nearest villager in frustration.
"You! Ever wanted to be Demon Lord?"
The villager, a humble potato farmer, blinked. "Uh… do I get benefits?"
"Probably?"
"Do I have to fight the Hero Party?"
"…Possibly?"
"Yeah, no thanks."
Even a potato farmer didn't want the job.
Loraine facepalmed.
Day 7: Complete and Utter Desperation
Loraine sat at the Hero Party's war table, utterly drained.
It was over.
There was no new Demon Lord. No villain to fight. No world-ending threat.
"We… we failed," she whispered.
The room was silent.
The party looked defeated, their grand purpose shattered before their eyes.
Then, suddenly—
"I HAVE AN IDEA!"
Everyone jumped as Loraine slammed her hands down.
"If we can't find a new Demon Lord, then…" Her eyes gleamed with newfound determination.
"…WE JUST HAVE TO BRING FUJINO BACK!"
A stunned pause.
Aurelia gasped, clutching her oversized robe. "Loraine, you can't be serious!"
Jelani rubbed her temples. "You do realize he left on purpose, right?"
Sirael adjusted her glasses. "Statistically speaking, the probability of him willingly returning is—"
"I REFUSE TO GO BACK TO FREELANCING!" Loraine howled.
The entire party exchanged looks.
Vira, their necromancer who had been silent this whole time, finally sighed. "…I do miss having a steady paycheck."
Aurelia groaned. "My rent is due next week."
Even the stoic Warrior Queen , Rhea Thunderstrike, nodded. "I'm in."
And thus, the Hero Party unanimously agreed to kidnap their former archnemesis to restore their jobs.
Part 2: The Hero Party Arrives (Fujino's Peace is Officially Over)
Fujino lay on his rickety bed, staring at the ceiling of his haunted shack.
He had tried to live a peaceful life.
He had really tried.
But now, he felt it.
A powerful, familiar presence approaching.
Then, he heard it—
"LORAINE LIONHEART DEMANDS YOUR PRESENCE, DEMON LORD!"
Fujino sat up so fast he almost broke his own neck.
"OH HELL NO."
His front door EXPLODED, sending splinters everywhere as Loraine and her party stormed inside.
"FUJINO TETSUYA!" she bellowed. "YOUR RETIREMENT PERIOD IS OVER! COME BACK TO WORK!"
Fujino stared at them. They stared back.
A long pause.
Then, very slowly—
He grabbed his pillow, held it over his face, and screamed into it.
To be continued…