The death of the hero

Like many in the vast multiverse, Lustria is a world of swords and magic. Also of similar nature were the inclusion of monsters and demons, which subsequently were led by a demon king. And one cannot have evil without good, and therefore the existence of the hero.

The hero is a being blessed by good luck and unimaginable innate potential. In a hero's lifespan they only have two objectives. Become a symbol of justice, and defeat the demon king.

The demon king is the polar opposite of the hero. The king of monsters is blessed with a ridiculously large initial power output that, unless certain conditions were met, would not improve much or deteriorate. The demon king has not two, but three objectives, become the symbol of evil, kill the hero, and ascend to Godhood.

Now in all of time and space there has never been an instance where the demon lord had actually fulfilled their secondary or third objective to kill the hero and ascend. This has been due to a number of variables such as "fate" favoring the hero and such. However, the main reasons for this constant defeat could be traced to three main points.

Arrogance, stagnation, and being content. 

All demon lords ooze arrogance from the moment they come out of the womb [ or egg]. This is natural as even as a babe the power they wield is stronger than high ranking demons. But this more often than naught leads to their downfall as the hero plays this against the demon lord.

Demon lords as mentioned beforehand mostly stay at the same level through their entire life cycle. This allows for the hero to , if given enough time, completely overpower the demon lord. Contentment also plays a role here.

Demon kings all allow themselves to be complacent. Never encouraged to improve or learn. This is where the biggest flaw of all demon lords lie.

These three vices had been apparent in all demon kings of the past. Originally this was the case for the latest demon king as well, but a certain incident changed all that. 

This newest demon king was no fool like his predecessors. No, he looked for more power. And he was rewarded handsomely.

All that was left was to kill the hero and ascend.

…... 

The world of Lusteria had arrived at its climax. The Demon king had launched an all or nothing attack at the center of the world where the capital of the holy nation Eden resided. However the goal was not to cripple the holy nations army's and claim their holy ground as its own.

No, it was the goddess that slumbered underneath the city that had garnered the attention of the Demon king. When he reaches the goddesses resting place he will kill and devour her and achieve his goals of ascending into godhood. And with that new power dethrone the ones who stand on top of the universe.

He would be strongest. He would be emperor. He would be God.

And no one could stop him. Not the human armys. Not the strongest warriors in the holy kingdom. And definitely not the hero.

...

*Boom!*

The sound of two swords clashing furiously rang out within the catacombs of Eden. Their impact so great it rivaled the explosion of a missile.

The ground shook endlessly as the origin of battle, a man and a woman, both wielding swords of high quality and make stood all but unmoving as they fought. Their hands were but a blur, untraceable to untrained eye, as they fought for dominance over one another.

They both were playing a dangerous dance, one mistake could lead to eithers death. The man who's 8"0' stature towered over the small 5"7' woman focused on his overwhelming strength, speed, and stamina in battle to give himself a distinct advantage over any previous fighter. Opposite to the man the woman relied on her skills, keen intellect,  and sheer determination to keep up with the tall man, and surprisingly she has.

Both were in a stalemate. Neither could overtake the other in mastery of the sword. The way they fought counteracted each other perfectly, leaving both with no openings they could act on without themselves being seriously harmed in the process. But sword skills weren't the only ability either side had.

In less than a second the woman disengaged from the clashing of blades, barely dodging an attack from the man as she did so. Now having some distance, the woman flicked her golden hair back revealing a ruby red diamond earring which glowed menacingly in the low light levels of the catacombs. The woman went to speak, possibly to use an activation word to enable the power the earring radiated to be of use, or possibly use a hero's uncanny ability to force their enemies to stand still, as they monologue about friendship and their journey towards the power to defeat the demon king.

Yes this was a battle between the demon king and the hero. And the man who acted as the current demon king, and who knew of this strange ability, was having none of it. He would not follow the same path his ancestors did.

In an instant the gap between her and him was closed. The only reaction the hero could give was widened eyes at the sudden increase in speed her polar opposite had shown. The demon king allowing a smug smirk to adorn his features enveloped the woman's face with his left hand, and proceeded to violently slam her into the ground.

The corresponding impact was loud, but the sickening sound of bones breaking and flesh tearing was much more prominent. A small crater formed around the woman's head signifying the point of impact as dust flew outwardly from the area. Somehow the woman wasn't dead and let out a pathetic whimper of pain, probably too in shock to give any other reaction.

The demon King after a moment released the hero from his clutches, satisfied with what he had done. The woman who previously held the confidence to defeat even the demon hoards by her lonesome, layed defeated at his feet. Her hair blond in color now stained red with her own blood, her hourglass body littered with bruises and a newly broken back, her armor enchanted with enough magic to rival a national treasure now in tatters, her face whose's beauty would not be misplaced in a goddess broken and disfigured, and finally her eyes which held steely determination and a fire that burned endlessly was gone replaced with dull ones that held only a spark of her previous self.

This sight filled the demon king with untold amounts of joy. For generations previous demon kings had all failed to defeat the hero, and had failed to reach their dream. A dream to become a god.

He was only a few steps away from reaching the collective goal of all the demon kings' past. He could sense the divinity of the goddess beckoning him. Ready to be devoured by him.

All he had to do was properly dispose of the hero. For as long as she held breath there existed a chance of his death. He had heard accounts of demon kings being killed because of mistaking the hero's death. Arrogance would not be his downfall.

The demon king held no pity as he prepared to crush the hero's head into a bloody paste. Though he did allow one thing to slip out of his mouth. One which he had wished to say since the very moment he had gained the power to do what no other demon king was able.

"Funny thing hero." Sounded out the demon king.

"What you have seen of me. Was just the tip of a very large iceberg".

The last thing the hero felt was the utter despair at knowing she stood no chance even if she had used her trump card. That and the boot-covered foot of the demon king.