Chapter 0

The twilight is slowly fading away.

Under normal circumstances, I’d be casually sipping on a mojito and enjoying the view, but unfortunately, my current situation doesn’t allow me that luxury.

“Stand-in prisoner Oscar Lucifer—!”

The Demon King’s Army commander solemnly announces. It’s a thunderous shout that echoes throughout the plaza.

That guy, just four months ago, couldn’t even look me in the eye, huh? Looks like he’s grown a lot.

“Carry out the execution of Saintess Maria—!”

In the sacred square of the continent, where life itself blossoms, I stand atop the guillotine alongside the Holy Church’s Saintess.

Eternal death approaches. If I crane my neck upward, I can clearly see the sharp blade ready to fall and sever my head clean off.

A snicker escapes me. Climbing all the way to second-in-command of the Demon King’s Army only to be executed by the Demon King himself? Hilarious enough to make me laugh.

Throughout the long war between the Demon Realm and the Continent, I was one of its main players. Being born a demon, naturally, I ended up joining the Demon King’s Army.

To put it bluntly, I simply loved evil. The boundless freedom of being a villain entranced me.

I took great pleasure in drenching the world in madness and chaos. Using the screams of humans as my work song, I wreaked havoc across the entire continent.

I threw the Continental Army into disarray, dismantled empires, beheaded Dragon Lords, burned down the World Tree of the elves, and massacred the arrogant humans.

Later, I was recognized for my achievements, earning the title of Duke of the Northern Demon Realm and the nickname “Joker.” Up until that point, I thought my future was set…but…

The Demon King’s Army didn’t lose. After the assassination of the emperor, the Continental Alliance crumbled. The problem was the Demon King standing behind me.

Addicted to power, the Demon King sought to monopolize it and decided to get rid of me. However, since I had become a key figure in the Demon King’s Army, and there wasn’t sufficient justification, the Demon King slapped me with a false charge of treason.

We did clash afterward…and as you can probably tell from my current predicament, I lost. We fought fiercely for about thirty minutes, but after an hour, I was clearly overpowered. That Demon King is disgustingly strong. There’s a reason they call him the strongest Demon King in history.

Anyway, after becoming a criminal, I was locked away in the world’s worst maximum-security prison. And not just any cell—I was stuck in the lowest level, where I was the only inmate. For 104 days, I served my sentence in suffocating solitude…until one day, a human arrived as a new prisoner.

Saintess Maria. The most sacred and pure human in the entire continent, now lying beside me.

She’s my polar opposite. While I was the backbone of the Demon King’s Army, she was the hope of the Continental Forces—even if both of us ended up condemned after our side’s victory.

“Fearful that I might have to walk this long and dark path alone, I’m relieved to find you here.”

“You’re the only person who could make such a grand statement about getting your head chopped off.”

“That’s overly generous praise indeed.”

I met the Saintess a week ago. In just seven short days, we became close enough to exchange lighthearted jokes. This was entirely due to her unconditional love.

When we first met, she boldly declared that she would embrace and love even someone like me, a demon. But I didn’t believe her. I thought it was all superficial talk. I was convinced that if I acted prickly even once, she’d quickly lose heart and back off.

But no, that wasn’t the case. During those seven days before the execution, the Saintess showed me nothing but sincerity and love. And I, in turn, fully accepted the love she offered. That’s how two complete opposites like us became friends.

“Oh, here it comes.”

Now, facing death, it all feels meaningless.

Clang!

The blade of the guillotine sharply descends toward the necks of the Saintess and me, under the watchful eyes of all the continent’s citizens and the Demon King’s Army. Once this falls, my pitiful life will come to an end.

Swoosh!

The icy blade touches my neck, sending a chill down my spine.

So this is how I die…

For a demon who lived quite an exhilarating life, born as the third son of the Northern Dukedom of the Demon Realm, it seems my story ends at the guillotine in this plaza.

Finally, the period is placed.

…

“Huh?”

It should’ve been over by now…

“Oscar, are you feeling alright? You’re sweating profusely.”

Some inexplicable eraser has wiped away my entire existence.

As if signaling that it’s time to start anew. Without leaving behind any clumsy regrets or stains.