There was a moment of deafening silence when the Demon Monarch raised his hand, signaling everyone not to make any sound.
No one would dare to defy him unless that someone was courting death. Any interruption from anyone was unforgivable. It was punishable by death.
The eight-headed giant serpent would be the one bestowing that punishment in an instant.
'No one should disrespect my master! No one is allowed to interrupt my master's speech otherwise, I will silence him forever!'
The eight-headed serpent looked around, giving everyone a warning look. Everyone could only zip their mouths and lower their heads, waiting for the Demon Monarch to deliver his speech.
Only Zach dared to focus his eyes on the front, meeting the gaze of the giant serpent. He saw the Demon Monarch open the dark magic scroll before speaking to them.
"As everyone knows, the throne of the Demon King has been vacant. He broke one Asura's rule and so, our mighty Demon God punished him. A traitor is not allowed to reign in this Asura Land."
"In connection to that, I will read the decree from our mighty Demon God regarding the vacant throne!"
Every demon anticipated what was written on the scroll. It was a decree coming from their mighty Demon God.
"With the dethronement of the previous Demon King, I hereby declare the search for the new Demon King. Every demon is given a chance to compete for the throne if and only if that demon reaches a certain rank."
"You have to pass the Six Trials that will be given by the Demon God to compete in the final stage of the Demon King selection."
"In order to qualify and join the six trials, a demon should reach the Demon Knight Rank. Those who are below Demon Knight Rank will be disqualified to compete for the Demon King throne."
"Starting today, all demons are given three months to work hard and reach the Demon Knight Rank. After three months, the First Trial will begin. Those who manage to reach the required rank are allowed to participate in the first trial."
"If you have any questions about this, you can seek an answer in the information hall. All your queries will be answered there."
The Demon Monarch ended his speech by reminding everyone to work hard in spreading darkness in the world and to get stronger.
After that, he disappeared in an instant together with the eight-headed giant serpent as if he had not come there.
When the Demon Monarch left, the deafening silence was replaced by an uproar coming from the overly excited demons. Zach could tell that everyone was rejoicing.
They were aiming for the Demon King's position because of the fame and privileges they would get once they became one.
Zach just continued observing everyone in amusement.
"Hey, Ryuki..."
"Yes, master?"
"Is it really great to become the Demon King? It seems that everyone here is looking forward to getting that position!"
Zach was wondering what were the benefits he could get from becoming a Demon King in this place? This was not a human world where a king could rule a kingdom or a country and possessed wealth and power.
What was the significance of becoming a Demon King?
"Master, once a demon becomes a Demon King, that demon can possess a great power. He will become stronger than the combined power of the thousands or millions of low ranking demons including the combined power of the Demon Generals."
"Demon King will have his own large territory in Asura Land. He will have his own armies of demons that he can dispatch in order to make him more powerful! He would be respected and being served by demons below his ranks. He will be superior to other demons!" Ryuki explained to Zach patiently.
"Oh, in short, Life will be easier for him in this hell." Zach butted in while Ryuki was in the middle of his explanation.
"Yes, master. Just like that!"
"So master! You should aim to become a Demon King! We will get lots of benefits. Besides, in this hell, there is called the survival of the fittest! We should climb high so that we will not be treated as trash by other demons."
"Master, be careful! There are lots of high-ranking demons who love to bully demons below their ranks. We should work hard and get stronger!" Ryuki was encouraging Zach to do better.
"Heh, you don't have to worry, Ryuki! That's my expertise! We will get stronger, not letting anyone bully us!" Zach mumbled with so much conviction in his words.
During his childhood, he experienced being bullied by the bigger kids. When he ran away from the orphanage, he promised himself that he would get stronger so that no one would ever hurt him again.
It was fate that brought him to meet the Leader of the Phantom Assassin Guild. He worked and trained hard to become stronger. And he succeeded!
In this new life as a demon, he would also do that! He would get stronger. Now, he had a goal… to become the next Demon King!
"By the way, Ryuki… the Demon Monarch said we have three months to level up our rank. From my current rank as Demon Warrior, what should I do to reach the Demon Knight rank?"
"Hmm. That is a very good question, Master. Ryuki will give you the best answer to that!" he said, his voice filled with enthusiasm.
"Hmm, so what is it?" Zach asked Ryuki expectantly while rubbing his hands together. He was eager to know the answer.
"Just simple, master! You have to collect lots of evil points by doing bad things and spreading darkness in the world!!!"
Zach frowned as he still didn't get what they had to do.
"How can we collect evil points and spread darkness in the world? Do you mean in this world? Can you be more specific, Ryuki?"
"Not here master, but into the human world. In three months duration, the demons will be dispatched into the human world. It is like accomplishing a demon task, Master."
"Demons have to influence humans to do evil things. With those evil deeds, we can collect evil points. There are corresponding evil points based on the level of evilness a human will do."
"Those evil points can be used to strengthen our power and skills to level up to another rank."
"Wait! Does it mean I can still return to the human world?"
"Yes, Master! That's the place where we can gather evil points!"