Tjima Sanzo, the 669th Demon King, stood at the edge of his tiny, pathetic demon territory, gazing into the vast, unknown wilderness beyond.
Behind him, his ridiculously overpowered army was gearing up for their first adventure.
Fenra, the deadly wolf-girl, was stretching her legs, already excited for a hunt.
Raviria, the drop-kick queen, was shadowboxing the air, her violent aura making the local insects flee.
Mimi, the jelly-like Slime Empress, was morphing into different weapons, testing out different combat forms just for fun.
Beelzecluck, his noble, monocle-wearing chicken, stood proudly on a rock, looking completely indifferent to the situation.
Tajima clenched his fists.
"Alright! Today marks the first official adventure of the Demon King's Army!"
Silence.
Fenra tilted her head. "…You mean a scouting trip?"
Tajima flinched. "I-I mean, yes, but it sounds cooler if we call it an adventure!"
Mimi jiggled. "Yay~ I love adventuring~!"
Raviria cracked her knuckles. "As long as we get to fight something."
Beelzecluck adjusted its monocle like a judgmental aristocrat.
Tajima took a deep breath. "Alright, team, let's go—"
He took one step forward…
And immediately tripped over a rock.
---
Fenra sighed. "He's not even out of the territory yet and he's already embarrassing us."
Mimi poked him with a slimy tendril. "Did you die~?"
Tajima groaned from the ground. "I just needed a dramatic opening! It was intentional!"
Beelzecluck bawked in the tone of someone saying 'sure, buddy.'
Raviria crossed her arms. "Let's just go before he hurts himself again."
Tajima scrambled to his feet, pretending like nothing happened.
"A-Anyway! We're officially leaving the Demon King's Territory!"
Fenra raised an eyebrow. "The shack?"
Tajima twitches. "…Yes, the shack."
Mimi clapped. "Yay~ We're leaving our glorious empire~!"
Beelzecluck shook its head in shame.
Tajima ignored them and dramatically pointed forward.
"ONWARD! TO ADVENTURE!"
---
One Hour Later…
Tajima was already out of breath.
His SSS+ tier army had been walking like normal people.
Meanwhile, he was dying.
Fenra side-eyed him. "…Are you seriously tired already?"
Tajima wheezed. "I… am… a… ruler… I don't… walk this much…"
Beelzecluck looked at him with pure disappointment.
Raviria sighed. "At this rate, it'll take us a week just to get anywhere."
Mimi poked Tajima's arm. "Want me to carry you~?"
Tajima flinched. "I… I refuse to be carried by a Slime!"
Mimi wiggled. "Aww~ but I'd be so comfy~"
Fenra chuckled. "Or I could just throw him."
Tajima screamed. "NO THROWING!"
---
Five Minutes Later… Tajima Was Being Carried
Tajima hung limp over Fenra's shoulder like a defeated sack of potatoes.
"…I hate this."
Fenra smirked. "You lasted one hour. That's actually better than I expected."
Beelzecluck bawked, clearly laughing at him.
Mimi happily bounced along. "This is fun~!"
Tajima covered his face. "I'm supposed to be the Demon King… Why am I like this…?"
The system chimed in.
[BECAUSE YOU HAVE 3 STRENGTH.]
Tajima screamed internally.
---
An Unexpected Encounter
As they moved deeper into the forest, Fenra suddenly stopped.
Her ears perked up.
Mimi jiggled, sensing something.
Beelzecluck stood perfectly still, its monocle glinting in the sunlight.
Raviria cracked her knuckles. "We're being watched."
Tajima flinched. "W-Wait, wait! We just left home! We're already getting into trouble!?"
Fenra lowered him onto the ground and took a battle stance.
In the distance, a shadow moved.
Then—
A pair of glowing eyes appeared in the trees.
A low growl rumbled through the forest.
Tajima gulped. "P-Please let it be a lost puppy…"
The creature stepped out of the darkness.
It was huge—a shadowy beast with jagged armor-like fur, massive claws, and a mouth filled with too many teeth.
A Nightmare Hound.
The system identified it.
[MONSTER IDENTIFIED: NIGHTMARE HOUND – A HIGH-LEVEL BEAST KNOWN FOR HUNTING HUMANS.]
Tajima's soul left his body.
"W-Wait… 'HUNTING HUMANS'!?"
The Nightmare Hound locked eyes with him.
And immediately charged.
Tajima screamed.
---
Raviria moved instantly, delivering a dropkick.
Fenra vanished, appearing behind the Hound.
Mimi morphed into a wall, blocking its path.
Beelzecluck… adjusted its monocle.
The Nightmare Hound skidded to a stop, suddenly realizing it had made a terrible mistake.
Tajima hid behind a tree. "D-Do we have to fight it!?"
Fenra grinned. "You wanted an army expansion, right? We could recruit it."
Tajima froze. "Wait… We're recruiting a monster that wants to eat me!?"
Raviria rolled her shoulders. "We tamed you, didn't we?"
Tajima felt personally attacked.
Mimi happily jiggled. "I wanna keep it~!"
The Nightmare Hound backed up, realizing it was surrounded.
Tajima took a deep breath. It was time to use his signature move—
Bullshitting.
He stepped forward dramatically. "Mighty Nightmare Hound! Your power is incredible! Your form is magnificent! Surely, a beast as great as you would prefer to be feared and respected rather than a simple wild animal?"
The Nightmare Hound hesitated.
Fenra raised an eyebrow. "Did you just call it cool?"
Tajima sweated. "U-Uh. Yes?"
The Nightmare Hound stared.
Then—
It lowered its head in submission.
The system chimed in.
[CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY RECRUITED: NIGHTMARE HOUND.]
Tajima stared in shock.
"…That worked!?"
Fenra shrugged. "Guess it likes compliments."
Mimi cheered. "Yay~ New pet!"
Beelzecluck looked unimpressed.
Tajima slowly realized something.
"…Wait. Does this mean we're going to try taming more dangerous creatures!?"
Fenra grinned. "Obviously."
Tajima screamed.
---
To Be Continued…