Chapter 3: The Demon King

Kenjiro didn't know how long he fell for, how fast he was falling or even if he was going to survive. He wasn't screaming, flailing about or anything… he just fell, his arms and legs being pushed up by the wind as he fell towards the ground that was coming closer and closer, it was like his ever impending doom that was finally coming closer to him.

When he finally did stop falling he groaned in pain, he wasn't dead, he didn't break anything, and he was still weak. Kenjiro didn't move from his spot on the ground, just wanting a proper moment to process everything that was happening to him.

So, let's start. Summoned to another then he was useless because he was weak, he got abused verbally and was betrayed by everyone he thought would stick by him.

They were classmates, they might not be family or even friends but this was a new situation for all of them, and they just… kicked him out. Like it was nothing. They put his name through the mud, and although it was only them there for it, Kenjiro doubted that they would keep quiet about him. They might not name him but they would speak of him and drag his name even further through the dirt, he would be a minor villain in their legends that they vanquished on their first day in this new world.

It was stupid, all because of something he couldn't control thye decided he was not going to be useful to them. He could still get stronger! And he would help them!

But… Did he want to? At this point in time, with all the rage and hatred he had towards his classmates and the goddess, does he even still want to help them? To save this world that already seems rotten?

… no. No he doesn't. And Kenjiro doesn't think he ever would want to help them again.

But, if he couldn't help them… who would he help? Could he get his revenge? Does he even want revenge? What's the point of continuing? Why did this happen to him? What about his family? Where was he?

All these thoughts kept replaying in his head and Kenjiro couldn't focus on one of them king enough to get a proper answer for any of them.

But he knew one thing. He hated the people who brought him here and the people who came with him. There was no doubt about that, no trace of doubt in his mind.

With his mind finally starting to focus on something he continued down this train of thought.

If he hated them, what was he going to do about it? Revenge? That sounded tempting, but even if he wanted it, how would he do it? Who would help him? Who would be crazy enough to help-.

He cut off their thoughts as one person came to mind- no, one species came to mind. Demons. They were the species the heroes were supposed to kill and if he wanted to kill the hero's then the demons were the right species for the job.

He just had to find them, give them the information he had and then they could make him strong.

Kenjiro finally opened his eyes and looked around, the ground around him was solid dirt, but no grass was visible for as far as his eyes could see.

The land wasn't flat with some bumps on it, the dirt cracking on bits and dust flying everywhere around him.

He heard loud footsteps and turned to look at it, he saw a person riding a horse coming towards him.

Although calling him a person would be wrong, his skin was a dark colour, like red, and his hair was as black as night. He had wings folded up on his back and dark coloured armour on him, a large sword around his hip. He was clearly taller than a normal human could ever be and looked to be hiding some compact muscle under his armour.

"Hoh? A human? With the scent of the goddess on him." He smirked evilly. "Hahaha, I didn't think it was possible but are you a hero?"

Kenjiro struggled to get up but managed to get on his knees for now. "I was, but I was betrayed. Let me help the demon king in killing the heroes and the goddess." He begged, he felt like he was doing a lot of begging but he would do it until he got what he wanted. And what he needed right now was to kill the heroes.

The demon was surprised, an emotion he didn't feel often, this kid- was telling the truth. He could literally feel the hatred flowing out of him. This could be useful.

He smirked evilly as he got off his horse and walked towards Kenjiro. "Alright kid, I'll take you to the demon king. He'll decide if wants to take you in."

The demon pulled Kenjiro up to his feet and dragged him to the horse. The demon got on first and then Kenjiro who had to be pulled up by the demon seeing as he couldn't get up by himself.

And then the horse started Galloping towards the demon king, the one who would decide if Kenjiro was going to get his revenge. In Kenjiro's mind there was no way that the demon king would refuse him. He had too much information to just kill, and he was willing to do whatever was needed to kill the heroes.

After about five minutes of riding on the horse, five minutes that the heroes could be using to get stronger, five minutes that could have been shortened down if the demon had just used his wings to fly, they finally got to the Demon King's castle.

Although calling it a castle was wrong. It was a whole country out in one building, it was a spectacle to behold.

They passed by other demons that shouted at him, some looks like they wanted to attack but didn't, seemingly having a lot of respect for the demon that was in front of Kenjiro.

They all went on about the 'goddess's scent', something Kenjiro assumed was the mana of the goddess, that was the only thing the goddess had done to them, she had cast a spell at the start to calm them all down.

During their ride to the demon king, going up floors and floors, a bell rang out. So loudly that Kenjiro thought his ear drums were going to burst.

"What was that?" Kenjiro asked, he didn't feel the need right now to be respectful. He was just focused on killing the heroes, as right now they were evil. If demons were evil, but this one in front of him had helped him, then what did that say about the world?

"The bell that sounded right now, was a notice that the beginning of a meeting that the demon king had called had started. That is where I will present you to him and he shall decide what to do from there." The demon explained.

Kenjiro nodded and didn't verbally respond. He was focused on what was going to be his fate. He wondered what the demon king would be like, would he be bigger than the demon in front of him? How strong would he be? He wouldn't know any of these answers until he saw the demon king but until then he kept on wondering.

When they got close enough to hear a few shouts on the top floor the demon had Kenjiro get off the horse and walk with him to the meeting room.

As they got closer the voice of one man got louder and louder. He was speaking loudly and bravely, and even though Kenjiro couldn't hear what he was saying he felt inspired to follow this man and do what he wanted.

They got to a big door that was so tall that the demon beside Kenjiro wasn't even one quarter of its height.

The demon whose name Kenjiro still didn't know, without hesitation and little effort opened the giant doors and walked in. The talking quieted down as they turned to look at Kenjiro and the demon.

A man at the front of the room spoke loudly, his voice filled with power, his rough voice like iron striking iron making Kenjiro want to block his ears.

"Ah, my loyal general, what news-." He cut himself off as he sniffed the air and looked at Kenjiro. "Why do you have a servant of that accursed goddess with you? Is he one of the heroes that were recently summoned?"

Kenjiro got a good look at the demon king and couldn't help but feel awe of the power he felt radiating off of him. Unlike the goddess who Kenjiro now knew was hiding her strength, the demon king didn't bother to hide it, he let it out in its full glory.

He was taller than anyone else in the room but still only about half way up that giant door. His skin was a dark colour, he had bright blood red hair and a goatee on his face. He wasn't wearing any armour but had clothes fit for a royal on him, with a majestic crown sitting on his head.

He looked down on Kenjiro with disinterest and distaste, but Kenjiro knew that was because the demon king didn't know what he could offer. Once he had heard the information he would be offering him strength for more information.

To the demon king though, all he saw was a weak human with the goddess scent surrounding him. But what put him off was his weird clothes that were cut and torn, but what really annoyed him was his eyes. It wasn't the eyes of a normal boy, especially a hero. His eyes were begging for anything, power, praise, something to make everything normal again. They were borderline insane, but not quite there yet.

The demon general, who was the one who brought Kenjiro with him, kneeled down in respect for the demon king and put his head down with one hand on his heart. "This, king Ath'texon, is one of the heroes, but he was betrayed and kicked out and now seeks revenge. He has information on the heroes that have been summoned as well." The general informed the demon king.

"Well then, let's hear it." Ath'texo, the Demon King, demanded. He was also kindly curious as to why the goddess would throw out a pawn, especially now that they have come here. Maybe this was all just part of some grand scheme of hers, Ath'texon would never know, her thinking was impossible to analyse.

So that's what Kenjiro did, he told the Demon King Ath'texo about some of, what he thought, were the weaker classes of the heroes and the average stats of them. Even if Kenjiro was desperate to have something, anything, after losing everything, he wasn't stupid. He knew he needed to have something else to give, or else they could throw him away.

Ath'texo grunted in displeasure, of course he knew that wasn't all the classes, the tiny and weak human had only mentioned ten classes, when there should be around twenty. "Tell me, why did they throw you out? Why did that accursed goddess get rid of one of her precious heroes?" He demanded.

Every single demon in the room was paying attention to Kenjiro now. The stares were putting an invisible pressure onto him that made him want to run away, but he stayed and told his story.

"Because… because I don't have a class, and my highest stat only goes up to twenty. I was called a failure of a hero, a waste of her energy. And I only have one useless skill- but I can still be useful to you! If you grant me power, I can go over to the heroes right now and kill them! Just give me a chance!" Kenjiro said despairing now, the second he had started explaining the look in the demon king's eyes changed… It looked like the goddess's.

The demon king stood up, towering over all other demons and made his way forward towards Kenjiro, all the demons in his way moving away in fright of getting trampled.

"I will not give you power. If this is what you are like at the start then you'll never get stronger." He bent down to Kenjiro's height and pushed one of his fingers up to his chin so Kenjiro was looking him in the eyes. "The reason heroes are so strong is because they don't think about normal skill limitations. If you think you're at the limit of your skill or you think you know how your skill works, that is what will happen. That's why demons are so strong! We have no limits! Unlike you pathetic human!"

With that said the demon king brought his hand to Kenjiro's face and mauled the lower face, he didn't even have time to scream out in pain as jaw was almost disconnected from his skull.

Now here he was, in a similar situation to before. Lying on the ground almost dead. This time instead of the heroes, it was the demons. Ah, it seems like this world really is bad. There was no good or evil. No heroes or demons. Everything was just wrong. There were no two sides, everything was just a big mess.

Kenjiro heard the demon king say something as he flicked his hand, Kenjiro's blood flying off it, his hearing muffled from blood loss. His vision started to go black and all he could see was the demon that brought him here walking towards him.