Chapter 4: Demon
Name: Alex Thompson
Class: Hero
Level: 1
Strength: 3
Agility: 2
Intelligence: 4
Mana: 5
"What, what is that?" Alex asked his voice shuddering at every utterance as he read the miserable numbers; he couldn't believe his eyes.
These were the worst statistics, even worse than even the weakest characters he had ever read in his favorite stories.
Streaks of shivers ran down and up his spine as the Demon King's laughter re-echoed through the dark chamber. "You see it now, do you?" the demon spat, his great cruel smile playing on his lips. "You were supposed to be some kind of mighty hero, someone worthy of battling me-but instead you are nothing other than a weakling, a disappointment."
Alex's mind was reeling in incredulity. How could this even be? Of all the stories, the summoned hero was always the strongest of them all, or at least had the potential to become extremely strong over time.
And here he sat before the Demon King, with his stats making him even weaker in comparison to most ordinary people.
"This-this has to be some kind of mistake," Alex muttered, panic rising in his chest. "I-I can't be this weak. This is a cheat. There's something wrong with it."
But the Demon King only shook his head. "There is no mistake," he said matter-of-factly. "You are only as I have summoned you: pathetic and powerless. Can't you see? It was all on purpose?"
It finally clicked in his head just like a load of bricks: he was stuck in this world, had to fight something way stronger than he would ever manage to be, and was no more than a chess piece in the Demon King's sick game.
"But. why summon me if I'm so weak?" Alex asked, desperation dripping into his voice. "What is the point?
A sadistic grin contorted the Demon King's face. "You may be weak now," he said, "but that's just why I chose you. You see, the more I defeat you, the more powerful I am, and the more powerful I get, the faster I break out of this world and into the real one. And the more you struggle and try to grow, the more satisfying it'll be when I crush you again and again."
That thought sent Alex's stomach churning. The Demon King wanted him to be a worthy opponent; he wanted him to toy with and discard at will, with the destruction of earth thrown in for good measure.
"So this was what that author was talking about!? This is the great danger" Alex thought to himself.
"I won't, " Alex replied, his fists clenched, "I won't play your game."
His eyes screwed narrower, the chill about them amplifying. "Oh, you will," he snarled-the venom dripped from every word. "You have no choice. You're bound to this world now, and for as long as you breathe, you'll fight me. And when you fall, I'll drag you back from the brink of death to do it all over again."
The wave of despair overwhelms him in the next instant: how to move even further away from such a nightmare, at all to survive, let alone defeat such a strong creature-a Demon King-when he is so weak?
"I. I have to get out of here," he muttered low and despairingly to himself, his brain considering a way out. There was no running or place to hide. He had to stay in this dark and desolate world with some sort of monster who only wanted to use him for his benefit.
He watched him, the smile in his face hinting that he enjoyed the torment playing in Alex's face. "Embrace your fate, Hero," he said now, softly, even coaxing, attempting to lead Alex into submission. "The sooner you do, the easier this shall be for you."
"I will find a way," Alex told himself more than to the Demon King, "I'll find a way to be stronger, defeat you, and save earth."
Again, the Demon King erupted into laughter. This time, it seemed the darkened chamber itself quivered at the sound of his voice, heavy with the tone of his humour growling aloud and echoing off of the cold walls. "Good," he growled aloud; heavy with his humour. "That's the spirit, Hero-one of the many reasons I chose you: tenacious. Try to squirm and struggle all you want, but that will make the sweetness of your eventual defeat just that much greater.".