Another Demon?!
“Ah, come on, no way! What's so great about being a villain anyway?!”
“““It'll work out! Pbbbt~!”””
“Boss... calm down. Let me handle this here...”
“No! I can't let kids walk this brutal path!!—"
After bickering with the kids like that, I ended up making a fool of myself. Honestly, it was embarrassing as hell, but what could I do? I couldn't drag them into this ugly underworld business.
Mira and Shera would've married some nice guys and lived happily ever after if not for that incident. But with their bodies like that now, they had no other options, so I took them into the family.
The shouting match between me and the kids dragged on, until other family members rushed over after hearing the commotion and finally calmed things down.
... ... ...
“Whew~ Aigoo, my head~”
“Actor oppa, you okay?”
“Boss oppa, does it hurt a lot?”
“Nah. Just... anyway, what were Mira and Shera's dreams originally? If not for that incident messing up their bodies...”
“W-We’re fine! We like it this way!”
“Yeah! We get to live with you, boss oppa, and the other oppas and unnis! We’re happy now!”
“Still... those bodies...”
“We like these bodies more!”
“They keep growing, getting stronger—love it! Look at these muscles!”
Wooddrk! Prooddrk!
The kids insisted they were fine and flexed their arms. Their muscles pumped up double the size, swelling massively. It wasn't just their arms—the muscles all over their bodies bulged and rippled.
The pants they wore and the bra made from monster leather let out screeeching sounds, on the verge of ripping apart from the strain.
“H-Hey, hold on! Calm down, kids?”
“Oppa! How do we look?! Bigger, right?!”
“Y-Yeah, I get it! Calm down! Kids?!”
Uulkeen! Wooddrk!
““And our dream is to marry oppa~!””
Riduduk! Screeech!
...“Kiiiiids?!”
The shocking reveal of the kids' future dreams coincided with their clothes finally giving out, exposing everything in a burst.
Mira and Shera's absurdly muscular bodies went on full display... and apparently, the younger kids watching from afar were all like, “Whoa~” “So cool~” in awe.
... ... ...
“Heh? The kids did that? Those little rascals~ Not bad, huh?”
“Not bad my ass! They made me and everyone else watch their naked muscle show! And Mira and Shera—they acted even prouder, flexing more and causing a bigger scene. I was flabbergasted!”
“Pfft! Yeah? Must be their growth spurt. I was the same way.”
The only one who could rein in Mira and Shera was basically Rina unni in the family, so an education officer ran off to fetch her, and that's how the chaos finally stopped.
No matter how strong those two got, they were still outclassed by Rina unni, and once she started yelling, hardly anyone could handle it.
“Sigh~ Anyway, did Rina unni know? About the kids' feelings, I mean?”
“Of course! Boss ordered me to look after them, right? As a fellow woman, I knew all about it!”
As family? Or... romantically?!
She was technically a year younger than me, but counting my past life, I was basically in my 60s—an old soul. So the kids' confessions didn't really hit me that hard. In my previous life, I slaved away just to eat, gave up on marriage, and died from overwork without ever dating once.
But now, accepting love from kids who could be my daughters—or granddaughters? Even with a new life and past behind me... nah.
“What about you, boss? Their feelings.”
“...Dunno. They still feel like cute little sisters. Hard to see them romantically...”
“Hmm~ Then what about me?”
“Huh?”
Grab!
!!! Smoooch!~♥
“Mmmph~♥ Slurp!~”
Suddenly, Rina unni scooped me up and ambushed me with a kiss. Her tongue—thicker than mine—ravaged my mouth, sweeping over the roof, corners, everywhere. Her saliva and beastly breaths flooded in.
“Pwah!~ Hehehe~♥ So? What about me?”
“R-Rina unni?”
“Me too, y'know. I like our boss~ Let me say it again from that day. Thanks for saving us, boss~♥”
......
“We can't live as normal humans anymore, but you never abandoned us, took us in as family... Falling for you as a woman? It's only natural. The kids feel the same.”
“Unni... I...”
“Shh! You don't have to answer now. I just wanted to let you know. Thanks, boss. Hehe~♥”
She set me down, bent at the waist to meet my eyes, and winked.
No matter that she was an ogre-chimera muscle monster, in that moment, she looked like any girl her age—or more beautiful than anyone.
Wait... all the women barging into my office lately? Nah, no way.
“Anyway, I'm off. Mira and Shera are probably sulking, so I'll cheer 'em up. You hang in there too, boss~”
“Y-Yeah... you too, unni.”
“Hehehe~♥”
Rina unni's face flushed red as she smiled, her steps lighter than usual.
A few days later.
“Boss! Urgent report! Those disgusting Holy Kingdom bastards have come to the North Continent preaching and recruiting.”
I'd been enjoying some rare peace, savoring calm days, when Vanessa stormed into the office, unusually agitated as she reported.
The Holy Kingdom from the Central Continent crossing to the North? Absurd.
“Holy Kingdom? What the hell do they want now?! Inquisition time?!”
“No, they're offering [Indulgences] forgiving all sins if you join the great [Holy War] to serve God's will and purge evil heretics.”
......
“Holy War? You mean... they're here to conscript for all-out war with Magus Civitas?!”
“Exactly. Those filthy hypocrites are always like that. Grind grind!~”
Coming from a former demon lord(?), her teeth-grinding was understandable. But the idea of those temple scum suddenly showing up in this long-abandoned land, dangling paper pardons to conscript North Continent folk? Even I found it ridiculous.
Scanning the report Vanessa handed me, I saw Holy Kingdom holy knights and priests had set up a wooden fort near the monster forest not far from the city. They were touring nearby cities, hyping this holy war nonsense.
Most folks here were criminals who'd fled after committing sins. Mercs turning bandit mid-escort, nobles in feuds gone wrong, bootleggers, smugglers, serial killers, demon worshippers, black mages, outer god cultists, failed rebels, pirates—you name it. This land was hell on earth.
But that also meant it was packed with top-tier powerhouses from other continents.
Demon worshippers and contractors would get rejected, but petty crooks might bite for a fresh start via those indulgences.
“They come to this city too?”
“Yes. They're preaching that ugly god's teachings right now. Grind grind!”
......
“Uh... Vanessa? It's Lucifer, right?”
“...I won't deny it.”
“Sigh~ What’s Big Daddy doing?”
“That mosquito plans to watch and wait. No point picking fights with the Holy Kingdom.”
“Mm~ Tell the family too. No need to stir trouble—don't provoke unless they do first.”
“Got it.”
“Then me, you, Allen, Derek, Jean, and Pablo should avoid going out. We're half-demons, basically.”
“If it's a hassle, why not just eliminate them?”
“Hey, what'd I just say? Don't touch 'em. We'll lay low even if it's annoying.”
“Whoa?! Boss! Annoying guest incoming!”
“Huh?”
Vrrrrm! Ding-a-ling~♪
Vanessa suddenly yelled and blocked me, glaring out the window.
I looked too—a black swirling sphere, like a hole or black hole, under the clear sky. Family members armed and surrounding it in response to the anomaly.
“Vanessa! Let's go!”
“Right!”
She'd called it an annoying guest, so not great, but with Vanessa—who'd even dominated Halphas—I wasn't scared. We headed to the outdoor garden with the black swirl.
“Boss!”
“Boss! What the hell is that?!”
“How should I know?! Everyone, hold position! If they attack, take 'em down!”
“““Yes sir!”””
Ding-a-ling~♪ Boom!
“Ugh!”
“Ack!”
“B-Body...”
“Huh? What's wrong with everyone?!”
What was it—a harp? A beautiful melody rang out, and the kids who'd been on guard with weapons drawn froze with short screams.
The family members couldn't even twitch their mouths, like puppets without strings.
A certain knowledge flashed in my mind.
Harp. Music. Domination... a demon related to that!
“Vanessa. Don't tell me...”
“Yeah, looks like that lunatic's here.”
Ding-a-ling~♪
“Ooh~ So cold to a rare visitor like me~ Great Baal~♪”
Ding-a-ling~♪
The black swirl cleared, revealing a stunning woman. Short blue curly hair, amethyst eyes, cute and slender—more like a beautiful girl than a woman. A long silver unicorn horn on her head, golden harp in hand, sheer white cleavage dress showing skin, gold bracelets and necklace.
Ding-a-ling~♪
“Ahh~♪ First time meeting like this~♪ Lord of Chaos~ Nice to meet you~ I'm Amdusias. Rank 67 of the 666 demons. Demon of Art, Amdusias~♪”
Ding-a-ling~♪
“Another demon?!”
No, why do demons keep showing up at my place?!