Notes from the Demon King, Page 76:

I've discovered that my gender is very fluid. Shape-shifting to a female form does not bother me, and in fact feels just as natural as my male body, (though I have found breasts to be somewhat of an annoyance) I can do this with almost no effort, unlike other shape-shifting tasks. As if the change is less of a rearranging of my mass and more of an alternate body that that is still my own.

The only side effects may be minor personality changes due to the slightly different structure of the brain. As of yet no other issues have shown themselves. I am inhabiting my feminine body as I write this and the strangest part is I feel female. I've started to use (she/her) as the pronouns to describe myself without realizing it, it just feels natural. But as soon as I change to my male form I'm (he) again.

This flexibly of my gender identity was definitely not the case back on earth, so I've come to theorize that it is some aspect of demonic biology or psychology. I've read many texts where a succubus is later referred to as an incubus and vice versa, I initially thought this was just a misuse of those terms but now I am not so sure.

This requires further study. Maybe... I should experiment in the bedroom from the other side of the spectrum.

(By that I mean sex, if that wasn't clear.)

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Chapter eight

The Demon King-

The Demon King looked over his mental notes on his new students.

What an interesting bunch. When separated from each other they had all answered differently when he asked them what ‘they wanted.’

Kenn had answered that he wanted to save the world, the demon noted that the boy didn't necessarily include his death in that. That would have to be remedied. The kid's heart was in the right place, but he doubted the warrior had ever killed another sapient being. And not for his lack of strength.

Hailey had wanted to protect her friends, a great mindset for anyone with focusing on a support role. And the demon got the feeling that the notion extended past her current circle. If the world survived, it would be better off having someone like the healer in it.

Sandra wanted adventure. In fact the demon King would say that she had a dangerous obsession with the concept. It would likely cause problems in the future but breaking her of it was something that would come of personal experience, it wasn't something he could force without doing permanent harm.

Ali had frankly answered that she wanted him dead. That was fine, great really, except that she hadn't stated a reason like ‘to save the world’ or ‘to survive.’ maybe the felt she didn't need to. The Demon King hoped that was the case. A quote from someone he once knew played in his head ‘spite for the sake of spite is worthless. If I hated you I would hate you for a reason’

A sad smile crossed the demon’s face at with the memory. He would just have to hope that applied to Ali too.

He always was smarter than both of us… chuckled GA’s voice in his head.

Then there was Giel. Giel had said something similar to Kenn, about saving the world or some shit. Giel had lied. The Demon King didn't know if the young man knew he had or not, but he was sure he had lied. Whatever Giel wanted the demon doubted it was so altruistic. Not to say the kid was evil or something, not yet at least. But power and corruption and all that.

The main body of the Demon King sighed, he was currently teaching his disciples though a mana clone, he would meet up with them physically later.

Right now, he was enjoying some booze in the adventures guild bar, in the form of a blonde, 30-ish dwarven woman. Unremarkable in every way except for her admittedly exaggerated bust and waistline, because how else was she supposed to get free drinks.

Or you could pay for them.

‘No thanks’ the demon responded with a mental guffaw

Receiving only a long-suffering sigh for the effort

He, or she, the Demon King didn’t care, took a sip of her eighth cocktail watching her mark though the corner of her vision.

She was doing much more than drinking of course, non-magical alcohol didn’t do much after the fourth trial and even the mana-enhanced stuff lost its kick after the sixth. No, the Demon King was keeping an eye on Captain Conmael, or should she say Captain Cornmeal, who had entered the building not too long after her.

The knight was sipping a cup of watery ale, practically drowning his sorrows in drink for a man of such structure.

The captain's mood must’ve had something to do with the mana communication the demon had sensed a few minutes ago. She wasn't able to decipher messages without alerting the captain, so she’d have to get her info the old-fashioned way.

The Demon King stood sashaying over to the captain’s table with a little more swish in her hips then was strictly necessary.

She had to play this right.

You're just looking for an excuse to flirt, I know your game.

She ignored the comment. Grinning inside because it was probably true.

The Demon King didn't know if the captain leaned more towards men or women. Worse case he was mono for men. Leaving, shape shifting and coming back would be suspicious as hell. But the demon had played the game for both teams for a while now and knew how to use either sex’s charms to their fullest effect.

Subtly increasing the size oh her butt and hips, enough that the subconscious would notice without the continuous mind getting the hint, she sat down in the seat on the other side of the table from Conmael, leaning forward just a little, so her chest was accentuated without it looking like she was trying to come on to him.

If she were in her male body she would have focused on her face and expression more but even with training of a knight, even with the mental fortitude of a fifth trial cultivator, that wasn't where Captain Conmeal was looking. Not really.

Hook. Line. Sinker.

“Hallo. The nam’s Clierie” The demon greeted, thinking up a fake name on the spot

Conmael looked up to her face, his own blank “Hello, Clierie. I’m Captain Sandril Conmael. Not to be rude but, may I ask why you took the trouble of approaching me?”

Now was the turning point...

“I’d noticed that y’u looked a bit down.” The Demon King said in his best northern accent “Yo’re a knioght righ’? I gottalot o’ respect fo’ y’u folk. I’d be ha’py t’ chat abou’ what’vers troubling you.”

The knight looked taken aback at first, then suspicious. The Demon King felt a sensation like light scratching in his soul as her core was scanned. She was suppressing her title already for the sake of convenience (hard to order a drink when the bartender is babbling in terror) and in that moment she fully suppressed all the layers above it as well, leaving her looking like a second trial mage to the captain’s scan. Low enough to be no kind of threat to him but high enough to be considered a ‘real mage,’ deserving of some respect at least as much as a child.

Conmael seemed to shrink once he saw he was in no danger, his face turning stern as he looked at her ‘weakness’.

“No, sorry miss my business is kingdom business. I don't speak of it.” he said coldly.

“Oh com’on, I’m sur’ there’s s’mething y’u can get off your chest” The Demon King pushed acting as if she didn’t notice the clear dismissal "I do’t need to know the details. Just v’nt what you can” She actually did want the details, obviously, as it likely involved her and those kids, but she needed to at least get him talking.

“No I-” The knight started, but he sighed as something inside him seemed to crumble, he slumped and the Demon King could almost see tears filling his eyes “Okay… I’ll tell you what I can. I- I think I need to talk to someone…”

The Demon King almost felt pity seeing such a strong and self-disciplined young mage, only in his first century or so, look so tired and emotionally exhausted. Putting on an understanding face she prompted “Go’on…”

“I’ve done… something horrible in the name of my duty… I-”

“Fuck yeah, he did...!” a random patron interrupted, clearly smashed, the lucky bastard, “That needle dick knight is the one who sacrificed the F-party to the Demon King…”

“F-party?” the demon couldn't help ask feeling this was important

Blitzed ben (that was what she was going to call the man until she got a name) gave her a look like she had just reveled that she didn't know what the sky was “y-you must be new here… there's a group... of no-trials who act like they’re adventures. Take all the f-ranked quests. Every body knows ‘em. Kinda losers...” he chuckled grinning that goofy grin that only drunks could manage before his anger returned “but I guess won't be doing no adventuring anymore...all because of belch him.” he said pointing accusedly at Conmael, or one of the many doubles likely in his vision.

"I did what I had to!” the knight defended sounding almost imploring. "I was only following orders.”

“That’s what the Nazis said.” The Demon King noted, upon their looks of confusion she explained “soldiers in a war to exterminate an entire race of people. Many of them did some extremely fucked up stuff under the guise of ‘following orders’, just something I read about in a book once” understatement of the millennia…

Cornmeal sighed "I dont know about these ‘natsies’ you’re talking about but I have a duty to this kingdom and this world, I long ago swore an oath to do all in my power to save it. If that mean sacrificing a few young lives, even my own children, I would do so.” He paused “who knows Mabey some of these soldiers in your tale were truely just good men followi-”

“NOOOO THEY WERE NOT!” the Demon King said hurriedly covering the captain’s mouth “never say that! Never ever say that!!!”

The captain growled but didn't try to cut her to ribbons. He would have failed, but it would have blown her cover which would be inconvenient, plus she really liked the dress she had on and prefer not have it ruined.

She cleared her throat, hoping to dispel the tension in the room and turned to face blitzed Ben,

“Can y’u tell me mor’ abou’ this F-party”

“S-sure, if, hic, you don't tell my spouses about me bein’ here” he chuckled dumbly “The hubby convinced the wife I was drinking too much, you know how… it is”

"I don't know why they would ever say that...”

“Somthing a-about me... gulping down half of the money I earned from questing. Ridiculous…”

“Yeah y’ur partners sound cra’y” the Demon King agreed while resisting the urge to roll her eyes “Now, about the F party?”

Real subtle DK…

Oh, shut up.

The drunks mind seemed to reboot for a long second before he began speaking “Yeah, those kids, weaklings allothem… surprised they haven't died yet… though I guess that just changed. Came from the home on the other side of town about a year ago and have been playing at adventure ever since. Don’t think they’veee t-taken any dungeon runs though… else they’d have been dead.”

“No dung’on experience you s’y” The Demon King couldn’t help but let a smile slip on to her face, “Oh this is gonna be fun.”

“What was that?” Cornmeal asked, his mana improved ears catching her slip up.

“Oh… nothin’. Can y’u point me to the quest board?”

As she stood to make her way over to the board the Demon King was momentarily startled when one of the sub-mind’s she had created to guide her students through their trial clicked fully back into the whole of her consciousness. that meant one of them was done and much sooner than she had expected.