*
Transmigrating into a dangerous otherworld, An Li becomes an impoverished student from a remote region who receives an admission letter from the imperial capital's top academy from the start. Hungry, she goes fishing and hooks a little tin can.
After prying open its seal with a bread knife, she finds a boy with tiny horns on his head, apparently suffering from amnesia.
Can't eat him. Guess I'll toss him back. An Li is disappointed.
Just as she's about to leave, the boy moves a finger, and the river instantly freezes into an endless sheet of ice.
The boy gives her a blank look. "Who are you?"
An Li silently picks a fish out of the ice. "..."
Huh, this one is edible.
"...I'm your master." Death is death, and her family could use some help with the housework. An Li's mind stirs, and she nervously takes a chance. "...Want to come with me?"
*
The white-haired boy doesn't need a salary or benefits. All he needs is room and board.
An Li is quite pleased to have a useful butler who works for free.
One day, An Li has a dream.
In it, she learns that she's a background NPC in a fantasy adventure story.
The only plot point involving her is that she accidentally fishes up the sealed Demon King of the Abyss. Once she breaks the seal, the world is plunged into darkness, setting the story's main plot in motion as the passionate heroes set out to save it.
The King of the Abyss scorns all the [rules] of the world, and is cruel and arrogant, with countless souls of the dead at his feet.
Naturally, she gets casually killed by the Demon King right from the start.
An Li wakes to the delicious smell of food.
The boy, who not long ago had cruelly cracked open the offspring of a hen, an egg, looks at her calmly.
"I added sugar to your coffee, just as you asked." Coffee beans! Souls of the dead!
"The fried egg has a runny yolk." Eggs! Nothing to worry about!
Even his worn-out shirt, washed until it had faded, looks like a custom-made garment for a noble.
An Li has just woken up, and speaks without thinking. "The bread is too soft. Make it crispier."
The boy pauses, eyes lowered. "...All right."
He turns to the oven and prepares another piece of bread to her specifications.
An Li: "..."
The Demon King of the Abyss, who scorns all the [rules] of the world, is now happily working as a butler in her broke rental apartment, skilled in every household chore.
...Wasn't he supposed to casually kill her right from the start? Haha.
There must be some mistake. Haha.
...Haha.
*
During an academy expedition, the hero party accidentally wanders into the Demon Realm.
With death staring them in the face, An Li sees the vengeful spirits and demons that had been lurking around them suddenly tremble and kneel. Werewolves and vampires bow their heads to her in reverence.
The magic power filling her body gathers into a figure.
One of her teammates recognizes him and looks terrified. "D-Demon King?!"
The white-haired boy's face is expressionless, but a faint, subtle gleam reflects in his dark eyes.
Ignoring everyone else present, he stares at An Li and says in a low, distant voice, "It's time. Why haven't you come back for dinner?"
The hero party: "???"
The inhabitants of the Demon Realm: "???"
An Li: "...He's rather clingy."
The hero party: This has to be an act.jpg
The inhabitants of the Demon Realm: Our King surely has a plan of their own! This must be part of it!! They must be plotting something earth-shattering!
Some time later.
The hero party: This doesn't look like an act.jpg
The inhabitants of the Demon Realm: Maybe we should switch jobs. Is the Abyss doomed? Our boss is a love-struck fool, the kind even the zombies next door wouldn't touch!
#What Did They Do to Our King of the Abyss?
#I Went Fishing and Accidentally Saved the World
#Huh? Destroy the World and Reclaim the Throne? I'm Busy Spoiling My Wife. Do Not Disturb.
#A scheming, possessive, love-struck Demon King, originally dark through and through but secretly soft inside, with MAXED-OUT possessiveness: She only lets me serve her, so she must be unable to live without me! (Better dress up before I go see my wife) (I'm a Demon King, cut me some slack) (Not big on morals)
#My own worldbuilding, with a mountain of personal additions. Human society's technology is close to modern-day levels.
Archived 2024.1.18
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