The Daily Life of the Demon King

After killing the two Marauders and destroying the Red Marker, Alex continued to frown, replaying the traitor's words in his mind. He knew exactly the kind of creature Davoth was—deceitful, cunning, willing to commit the vilest acts just to gain the upper hand. People like him never hesitated to use dirty tricks and intricate schemes to drag their enemies into despair.

"The end justifies the means," Machiavelli once said.

And Davoth was precisely that kind of person. He would do anything to eliminate those he deemed a threat or bend them to his will.

Alex lifted his gaze, letting it linger on Rebecca, Saeko, and Valmet. He understood that Davoth would strike at what mattered most—meaning he had to ensure the girls' safety. But before his thoughts could drift too far into darkness, he quickly shook them off. He already had a plan—seal off the universe so those two bastards couldn't escape, strengthen Earth, and with a single snap of his fingers, wipe out all the Red Markers.

He had already figured out how to locate them. All he had to do was focus, and he could see the position of every Marker constructed on Earth. The only thing left was to lure those two scum out, gut them like pigs, and finally go on vacation with his girls.

The thought of a vacation with his family made him smile involuntarily. Then he let out a quiet chuckle... and, without paying attention to where he was walking, slammed straight into a wall, crashing through it.

Glancing around, he calmly stepped back, returned to the hangar, crouched slightly, and with a light movement, leaped back into the command center. Landing smoothly, Alex raised a hand and grinned.

"Yo, looks like we're done here."

Rebecca narrowed her eyes, studying his expression. It seemed like Alex was back to normal… She clicked her tongue in mild disappointment, realizing she wouldn't be able to use his sour mood as an excuse to pamper him and steal some alone time.

The rest of the group looked at him and, seeing that he was back to his usual carefree self, shook their heads. Especially those who had known him for a long time.

For them, this operation was supposed to be a tense battle against an army of the undead, followed by the destruction of the Red Marker and a desperate escape. But in the end, everything had ended so quickly that no one had even processed what happened.

"Dude, what the hell?!" R complained. "Where's the epic battle we were waiting for?! Couldn't you have at least fought those weird demons a little longer? Instead, you just swung your sword once, and it was over."

"Yeah, Alex," Toji chimed in. "Watching your fights is better than watching anime! Where's the epic boss battle?!"

Alex's eye twitched.

These two… Instead of being grateful that everything ended quickly, they were complaining that he didn't drag the fight out?! Alex gave them a dry look—they were acting like kids who didn't get the toy they wanted.

He pondered for a moment… It seemed things had become too easy for them. Maybe it was time to bring back physical training? Since they had been focusing only on chakra control, they had way too much free time...

Rebecca, noticing his expression, couldn't hold back her laughter.

Valmet, who had grown tired of this nonsense, silently stepped forward… and with a few precise strikes, shut up the entire male half of the group. The guys now eyed her warily, realizing their mistake.

Alex smirked. This was better than letting GIR and MIMI handle them—those two would've turned it into a real endurance test.

"So? Are we done here or what?" Lehm asked, barely hiding his grin as he glanced at the bruised guys.

"More or less," Alex nodded. "We just need to clean up here, then we can head back to the aircraft carrier… and keep sailing forward. After all, our goal is to find the One Piece!"

Lehm just chuckled, shaking his head.

Those who didn't know what One Piece was or why Alex was looking for it exchanged glances, not understanding what he was talking about.

Rebecca smirked and nodded in agreement, while Valmet sighed, realizing that Alex had once again drifted off in another direction.

"So, how are you planning to clear this place? Just erase all the data?" Chun-Li asked, pulling him out of his daydreaming.

"Oh, right! Let me explain to you, my dear Chun-Li, exactly how this will go down..."

"Since when did I become your 'dear'?" Chun-Li raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, my apologies… Super-mega-awesome fighter girl Chun-Li with amazing thighs, allow me to explain how I'm going to clear out this secret lab that looks like a giant anthill."

With those words, Alex grinned widely, while Valmet let out a heavy sigh, already knowing she wouldn't like his answer.

The guys stared at Alex, giving him a thumbs-up in approval, but at the same time, there was clear jealousy in their eyes. Deep down, each of them admitted that Chun-Li had incredible legs, and what annoyed them the most was the fact that Alex had already managed to grope her thighs.

Ghost, on the other hand, looked at him with a blank expression. Only one thought spun in his head: Alex is a weird guy.

The girls unintentionally glanced at Chun-Li's legs before sneaking a look at their own, as if comparing. Chun-Li noticed this and couldn't resist a smug smile—no matter how small, it was always nice to feel superior. No matter what anyone said, every girl enjoyed being better than her rivals in at least something.

Valmet suddenly pinched Alex's waist, reminding him that they had more important things to do than flirt. He felt her fingers twist his skin, and at that moment, something wrapped around his leg. Zhang Ya had discreetly used her hair to ensnare him, squeezing even tighter.

"Stop wasting time. Don't forget why we're here," Valmet said firmly, tightening her grip.

"Yeah, yeah, I know!" Alex grumbled, rolling his eyes. "I was just answering a question!"

"Sure, of course. You were just flirting with another girl right in front of your three girlfriends, and now you're paying the price. No need to make excuses," R drawled, his voice dripping with jealousy.

Alex shot him a dry, disdainful look and smirked. R clenched his teeth. Out of the whole team, he envied Alex the most—there were always beautiful women around him. The others just sighed heavily, fully aware that this had already become a common occurrence.

Shigure quietly tugged on Alex's sleeve to get his attention. When he turned to her, she silently pointed at her thighs. At first, he didn't understand what she wanted, but then, catching her thoughtful expression, he figured it out.

She wants to know how I rate her figure.

Alex gave her a slight nod with a soft smile, confirming her silent question. A barely noticeable smile flickered on Shigure's face before vanishing just as quickly.

"Alright, enough flirting," Ada said irritably. "We've wasted enough time. Can you finally explain how you're going to clear this place so we can move on?"

"Oh, come on. Why are you getting all worked up?" Alex waved her off in a cheerful tone. "Everything's fine! We beat the bad guys, destroyed the dangerous thing. Now we just need to take a breather. And the easiest way to do that is…"

"Flirting with girls," Cammy finished for him with a giggle.

"Almost," Alex chuckled, then turned to Rebecca and held out his hand. "My love, empty your pockets."

Rebecca immediately clenched her fists, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Why? I don't have anything!" she blurted out way too quickly, not even thinking.

Alex narrowed his eyes skeptically. Even Valmet and Saeko didn't believe Rebecca's words. In fact, the entire team was sure she was hiding something.

"Hurry up," Alex repeated calmly but firmly, keeping his hand extended.

Rebecca pouted in annoyance but, realizing no one was going to believe her, angrily unzipped her hoodie, revealing only her bra underneath. Before any of the guys could get a good look, they were met with Alex's empty yet menacing gaze.

That look carried a single, unmistakable warning: Try to see anything, and I'll bury you.

The guys instantly snapped their heads away so fast it seemed like their necks had rotated a full 180 degrees.

Rebecca reached into her hoodie's inner pocket and reluctantly pulled out a black cube the size of a fist before sulkingly shoving it into Alex's hands.

He examined it with interest.

"Oh, my dear, you stole it," he drawled, recognizing his own bomb.

It was one of his experimental toys, something he had created a while ago. Alex was well aware that Rebecca had snatched more than a few of his inventions from his workshop. Judging by the markings, this particular cube had likely been taken from his motorcycle.

With his free hand, he pinched her nose, causing her to flail her arms in protest.

Valmet frowned as she recognized the cube. She had seen it in action before—when they escaped from the airport, it was one of these that had blown up an entire terminal, leaving behind nothing but rubble.

"And what exactly is that thing?" Ada asked curiously, reaching toward the cube.

"It's a bomb. A very powerful bomb," Valmet explained, keeping a close eye on the team's reactions.

Ada instantly yanked her hand back.

"Wait, a bomb?!" she exclaimed, staring at the small black cube with newfound concern. "Are you telling me that this tiny thing can blow up this entire underground complex?!"

With a smug grin, Alex raised the cube and spun it slightly between his fingers.

"Exactly," he confirmed cheerfully.

He didn't bother explaining further—why waste time talking when he could just show them what his inventions were capable of?

The moment the word "bomb" was spoken, the guys immediately locked their eyes on the black cube in Alex's hands. Those from Lehm's group recognized it instantly—they had already witnessed the destruction these devices could cause and knew exactly how deadly even a tiny one could be.

Alex carefully examined the cube, searching for its marking. Upon spotting the engraved number '1', he quickly realized he was holding the first version of the explosive device—one with an enormous blast radius. That meant it had more than enough power to wipe the underground lab off the map.

"Okay, let's say this thing really can blow up the whole complex," Soap noted skeptically. "How exactly are we supposed to get out of here?"

"Oh…" Alex blinked, as if only now realizing the issue. "Right. Almost forgot. One sec."

Ignoring the looks his teammates were giving him, he quickly walked over to the control panel and pulled up a schematic of the hangar. He had already spotted helicopters earlier, which meant there had to be an exit to the surface somewhere. It didn't take long to figure out the system—he immediately activated the emergency hatch release.

A deep mechanical hum echoed through the hangar as heavy ceiling doors began to slide apart, allowing daylight to flood in.

Hearing the sound, the others approached the edge and tilted their heads back, watching as the passage above them slowly opened.

There was just one problem. Without an aircraft, using that exit was impossible. And among them, only G.I.R. and MIMI could claim to have any flying experience.

"I don't want to disappoint you, but your 'shortcut' isn't so short after all," Lehm said with a smirk, pointing at the high opening. "And how are you planning to get up there?"

"You'll see for yourselves soon enough. For now, grab your weapon bags and head downstairs," Alex said calmly, rising from his seat.

Approaching Rebecca, he skillfully lifted her and tossed her onto his back. Then, with one hand, he picked up Valmet, and with the other, Saeko. Without giving anyone else a chance to react, he confidently stepped forward and jumped down several meters. G.I.R. and MIMI followed him silently.

"You could've helped us too, what happened to being a gentleman?" Ada grumbled, rolling her eyes.

She didn't waste any time and quickly descended using a grappling hook. Shigure followed her, skillfully grabbing ledges and landing lightly next to the others. Chun-Li and Cammy weren't about to fall behind—they made their way down gracefully and confidently.

The guys in the command center were the only ones left behind, no one even thought to wait for them.

"Well, I've had military training, but this kind of descent isn't for me," Soap said, looking down.

"Don't worry, Johnny. We'll just use a rope," Ghost smirked, securing a strong rope.

The guys had completely forgotten about the obvious option of using a rope. But since Alex had preferred a dramatic entrance, they didn't want to fall behind. After securing a few more ropes, the fighters began to carefully descend.

Once on the ground, they quickly headed toward Alex and the girls, who were already standing right beneath the open passage.

After making sure everyone was there, Alex easily tossed the black cube toward the command center. At that moment, he counted the people present again: Lehm, Price, Soap, Ghost—everyone was there. The girls too. G.I.R. and MIMI, as usual, nearby. No one was missing.

"Alright," he looked at the team and smirked. "Come closer and hold on tight."

No one understood why Alex told everyone to hold on tight, especially since there was nothing around them but people.

Rebecca just smirked and, without wasting any time, pressed herself against Alex's chest. G.I.R. and MIMI immediately clung to his legs. Valmet and Saeko, sensing something was off, grabbed his arms. Shigure followed their lead, and then came Chun-Li, Cammy, and Ada.

In the end, Alex was surrounded on all sides by girls, which made him nervously twitch his eye. Especially considering his hands were now occupied.

"Should we hold on to you too?" R smirked, watching the scene.

"I said hold on tight, not hold on to me! Those aren't the same thing!" Alex rolled his eyes in response.

"You're the most stable one here, so it makes sense to hold on to you," Ada said nonchalantly, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Alex sighed and tried to move his arms slightly to free himself, but it didn't help much.

"Damn it…"

Collecting himself, he began forming seals, as he still needed to pretend to be a "ninja" until the last moment.

"Earth Style: Stone Pillar."

Alex kicked the floor sharply, and a deep rumble echoed immediately. The floor beneath them trembled, and then something powerful shot upward, throwing them all into the air.

Before anyone could protest, the spot they had been standing on rose up, transforming into a massive stone pillar that quickly carried them toward the ceiling.

Now everyone understood why Alex had said to hold on.

The passage in the hangar's ceiling was approaching rapidly. After a few seconds, the pillar broke through to the surface, and they were met by a sharp flow of daylight. Having spent several hours in the underground lab, they instinctively squinted against the bright sun.

But the escape was far from over.

Alex formed seals again and stomped his foot.

"Earth Style: Stone Bridge."

A sturdy stone bridge extended from the pillar, arching over the chasm. Now they could cross to a safe zone without the risk of jumping down.

Meanwhile, Alex still stood surrounded by the girls, who didn't seem to want to let go of him. Even the guys looked slightly stunned by what they had just witnessed.

"Hey, how long are you going to keep hanging on to me?" Alex gave a slight tug with his hands, but to no avail. "I don't mind, but it's not exactly comfortable."

The girls seemed to snap out of it and finally let go of him. Well, almost all of them. Rebecca and Shigure were still clinging to him, clearly not intending to get off.

Alex sighed, moved his arms, and stretched his neck. He wouldn't mind such attention, but it'd be better in a more appropriate setting.

Turning his gaze toward the guys, he noticed they were slowly crossing the bridge, simultaneously admiring the column that had just lifted them.

"Impressed?" Alex smirked, shaking his head.

To be honest, their reaction was a bit surprising. They'd already seen him firing bullets like a railgun, creating stone walls, and moving so fast it seemed like he was in multiple places at once.

Once everyone crossed the bridge, it was just a short walk to the transport they had arrived in. Fortunately, the distance wasn't far.

Saeko suddenly froze and looked around cautiously.

"Where did all the undead go? There should've been plenty of infected here…"

"They probably scattered," Valmet suggested, frowning thoughtfully.

Alex wasn't sure that the undead flooding the city had simply scattered after the Red Marker was destroyed. It seemed too suspicious. However, he decided not to voice his suspicions—there was no need for unnecessary worry at this moment.

After reaching the transport and loading the weapon bags, the group began getting into the vehicles to return to the port.

After seating Rebecca and Shigure in the Humvee, Alex made his way to another armored vehicle, where Price, Ghost, and Soap were already waiting. He got inside, cracked the window, and lit a cigarette, taking a deep drag.

As soon as the pillar started moving, Alex took out his phone and activated the Black Cube. In the same instant, a powerful explosion rang out, and the ground began to shake. Behind the vehicles, the sound of collapsing structures could be heard.

Alex looked out the window and saw a massive mushroom-shaped cloud rising from the ground.

"Damn, that was powerful," Soap said, sticking his head out the window and watching the destruction. "Next time, I think we should drive farther away."

"Definitely," Alex replied nonchalantly, giving a thumbs-up.

Soap looked at him in surprise, realizing the implication about the next time. Price just grunted and shook his head.

Alex leaned back in his seat, continuing to smoke. Right now, only one thing worried him—the upcoming trip to Alaska. There, they would need to adjust their plans, and if they managed to save people along the way, it might attract even more attention from Davoth and the Minister of the Monoliths.

The more their group interfered with events, the more active the enemies would have to become. And the more they moved, the higher the chance of drawing them out of the shadows. These kinds of beings didn't act directly. They preferred to stay in the shadows, waiting for the moment when they could crush the last desperate ones to completely break the will of the resistance.

But what troubled Alex even more was the presence of Marauders near the Red Marker. There were no other demons there. Why?

He quickly ran through possible explanations. The only logical one was that the Minister of the Monoliths was slowly persuading Davoth's army to join his side. If this was true, it was a very elegant move, especially if done covertly. The key was not to shove it in Davoth's face, or it would be an outright declaration of war.

But who was stronger between the two? The Minister or Davoth?

However, Alex considered this less important. In the end, both would need to be killed. So what difference did it make who was stronger?

"You know who those two were that you killed?" Ghost suddenly spoke, his voice cold.

Alex opened his eyes and looked at him. Price and Soap also turned to him, waiting for an answer. Ghost was watching Alex closely, seemingly searching for something.

Alex paused. He couldn't reveal too much.

People already knew about the Red Marker and the looming threat. But if he told them the whole truth—about the demons, the invasion, the Dark Lord who was worse than any horror they could imagine… It could break their morale.

"Not exactly," he finally said, shaking his head. "It's a lot more complicated than it seems."

"Then enlighten us, kid. If you don't mind," Price said calmly, glancing at Alex through the rearview mirror.

Alex thought for a moment.

"Remember when I said the Marker's history goes back to Mesopotamia?" he began. "If the Black Marker drove people insane and made them build new Red Markers… then why is this world still standing?"

Price and Soap exchanged glances.

"The answer's obvious," Alex continued, carefully choosing his words. "There were those who fought against it. Those two I killed—they're remnants of the past. It seems they managed to survive all that happened…"

It was nonsense, complete improvisation, but it sounded convincing.

Alex mentally patted himself on the back for his ability to speak the most absurd nonsense with a serious expression on his face. At times like this, it was impossible to verify the truth of his words, and any historical nonsense he spouted in the future could be taken as fact.

Moreover, GIR and MIMI had already found many ancient references to the Black Marker on the global network, which made his task even easier. Now he could lie with even more conviction.

"Then why did you call them traitors?" Soap asked, intrigued by the story.

"It's clear enough. If there were those who fought evil, then there were also those who betrayed their own for power and strength," Alex replied calmly.

"So, according to you, they betrayed their comrades and switched sides?" Ghost clarified.

"Exactly. Betrayal has always been a part of human history, so it's no surprise that it happened here too. I'm sure there are still people who will switch sides, especially in the current situation. And there will be many of them," Alex shrugged.

"You're right about that, kid. Traitors have always existed, and there's no surprise in that," Price smirked, looking out the window.

Alex just nodded. People always betrayed each other—for various reasons—and that would never change. He looked out the window, deciding to just relax and not burden his mind with unnecessary thoughts. He couldn't change human nature, nor did he intend to. He wasn't so self-absorbed as to try to reshape worlds for himself, attempting to make them "better."

He had his own mission: to save timelines, kill the avatars of Nyan-Nyan, visit new worlds, meet interesting people, perhaps have some fun by tormenting various villains... and, of course, spread a bit of chaos. This thought brought a calm, almost imperceptible smile to his face.

When the column entered the port, they were met with a scene of destruction: dead undead scattered everywhere.

"Seems like now we know where they all went," Ghost said calmly.

"Unfortunately, they made the wrong choice... I even feel a little sorry for them," Soap smirked.

Alex smiled, surveying the battlefield. Someone had clearly sent the undead and demons to the port, but unfortunately for them, this "someone" hadn't accounted for the fact that the aircraft carrier's weaponry wasn't just for show, and the fighters on board were more than enough to hold off the horde.

Alex's gaze caught a few large demons with massive holes in their bodies—most likely the work of Brunhilde. As for the Cyberdemon, it had no head at all. That puzzled him a little—someone had clearly shown particular cruelty.

As the column neared the aircraft carrier, Valmet contacted the girls who remained aboard. A few seconds later, the ramp began to lower, and they were able to climb aboard peacefully.

After parking the cars, everyone started getting out and grabbing bags of weapons. After a while, Brunhilde and the other girls appeared on the deck. From behind them, Stitch jumped out and immediately ran to GIR and MIMI. Judging by his excited yelps, he was the one who tore off the Cyberdemon's head. Rebecca happily scooped him up, hugged him tightly, and began petting him.

"What did we miss?" Alex asked, addressing the girls.

"Not long ago, a whole horde attacked us, but it was over quickly. Those who survived the barrage were finished off by the others," Saya answered, hugging Alex.

"And what did you find?" Rei asked, also pressing against him.

"Nothing special," he replied, but then frowned, looking around at the girls. "Saya, where's Yuriko? Why don't I see her?"

"She was talking to someone when you arrived," Rika answered, opening one of the bags of weapons.

Alex nodded, shifting his gaze to Brunhilde. Catching his unspoken cue, the Valkyrie squinted, reconnecting spiritually, and closed her eyes. Moments later, she opened them again—first looking at his shadow, clearly wanting to make sure the girl's ghost was inside.

Alex involuntarily raised an eyebrow. She chose to check Zhang Ya before asking about the other events he and his group had encountered in the underground laboratory. But now, he wasn't going to waste time on explanations—he much preferred to just relax.

Whistling for GIR, MIMI, and Stitch, he pointed to the bags of weapons and gestured for them to move them to the workshop. Grabbing the luggage, Alex and his little helpers headed upstairs.

When they reached the bridge, Alex saw Yuriko talking to someone. This caught his attention. Who could be in contact at this time? Moreover, it seemed that among her friends or acquaintances, there was no one left who had managed to survive.

Not wanting to disturb Yuriko, he headed to the workshop to put away the weapons. Still trying to find time to make armor for the others, especially the girls, and most importantly—work on weapons—Alex indifferently tossed the weapon bags into the corner as if they were unnecessary junk.

The door behind him opened. He turned around and saw Yuriko. The girl silently approached, hugged him, and rested her chin on his shoulder. Alex smiled and wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Did you miss me that much? We've only been gone for a couple of hours," he chuckled, pulling her closer.

"Darling, can I ask you for something?" Yuriko slightly pulled back but didn't release him from her embrace.

"Of course. What does my beautiful lady wish?" Alex asked with a light smile.

"Could we go after my friend?" There was a slight note of worry in her voice.

"Friend? Where from? I don't mind, but I need to know where we're heading," Alex said, pressing his forehead against hers.

"To Roanapur," Yuriko replied, looking into his eyes.

Alex raised an eyebrow.

"So, we need to go after your friend—Balalaika? Did she ask for help herself? Or did you offer?"

"I offered," Yuriko confessed. "We do have an entire aircraft carrier. And since we're relatively close to the island, I thought we could help."

Alex nodded, agreeing. He had nothing against rescuing Balalaika. Besides, Roanapur was indeed nearby, so they could be there by evening.

Realizing he had agreed, Yuriko wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. Alex smiled, pulled her closer, and kissed her back.

Even if they had to make a detour, he didn't mind. Deep down, he already knew they wouldn't be able to head straight back to Alaska right away. Especially since Balalaika had former soldiers under her command, who followed her and became part of the mafia.

To be continued...

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