Supreme Demon Lord

Gabriel Hart finished his speech.

A roaring applause followed as he elegantly descended from the stage.

As he walked back to his seat, his eyes went toward James Kang — the only person who hadn't clapped.

"Hrmm…"

James sat there, legs crossed, a lazy smirk on his lips as he tapped his fingers against the armrest like he was watching some low-budget talent show.

For a brief moment, Gabriel's carefully maintained smile faltered and his face hardened into something real. But just as quickly, the polished mask returned, settling onto his face like an expensive accessory.

He turned away, pretending James didn't exist.

『I thought mother already said she'd ensure he wasn't elected as an executive director…』

･･･

Vivian strode back to the podium as her expensive heels clicked against the stage floor. The moment she appeared under the bright lights, the hall shifted.

The old, pot-bellied businessmen — who had spent Gabriel's speech either snoring or scrolling through their stock portfolios — suddenly sat up straighter as their eyes sparkled with deep interest.

Vivian cleared her throat, and a few of them even adjusted their ties, as if preparing for an impromptu date.

"I'll go over the rules again…"

Her voice was smooth like honey.

"Once you set up your business pitch at your assigned booth in a street market fashion, the judges and my team will evaluate your products. Explain them freely and confidently — this will also be a major factor in determining the winner."

The young entrepreneurs nodded in unison.

Their eyes burned with determination.

Vivian's smile sharpened slightly.

"To maintain fairness and reflect the true struggles of the business world, there will be no separate interviews or presentations. This means you must hustle. Do whatever it takes to grab the attention of the judges."

A ripple of tension spread through the contestants.

They exchanged glances, some nodding, others clenching their fists.

Sitting among them, Ada exhaled slowly.

Everyone looked so ready—so intense.

She clenched her fists close to her chest and muttered under her breath—

"Fighting…!"

Vivian tapped on the mic again.

"The results will be announced in a week… or maybe sooner, depending on what the board of directors decides after reviewing the final scores."

She swept a strand of hair behind her ear with grace.

Several businessmen turned beet red, practically melting in their seats.

With a soft smile, she leaned into the mic.

"Let the event begin."

A thunderous applause erupted — mostly from men trying (and failing) to impress her.

The women in the room exchanged unimpressed looks as their expressions carried heavy disdain.

Unfazed, Vivian turned to leave the stage—only to pause.

Her vixen eyes landed on James Kang.

He hadn't moved.

He sat there, still sucking on a lollipop, still watching her like he was mildly entertained by some personal joke.

Their eyes locked.

Vivian's expression twisted into pure loathing.

James?

He calmly popped the lollipop out of his mouth, twirled it between his fingers, and gave her a lazy wave.

Vivian's entire body tensed.

With a sharp flick of her hair, she turned on her heel and marched away like a furious soldier.

Behind James, Alfred leaned down slightly.

"Master James, would it be crazy if I said Miss Hughes still seems deeply attracted to you?"

James let out a low chuckle, shaking his head.

"No. You're pretty accurate."

Alfred straightened with a small, proud smile—another day of proving how well he knew his master.

･･･

Minutes later.

The massive stage had transformed.

It was now a sleek, air-conditioned street market.

Booths lined the area, young entrepreneurs eagerly displayed their creations while stone-faced judges and Vivian's team moved between them.

Seated comfortably, James had found a new way to entertain himself.

A young entrepreneur held up a strange, white device.

"This AI-powered toilet paper dispenser tracks your usage, suggests optimal wiping techniques, and even orders more TP when you're running low! It's the future of bathroom hygiene!"

The audience muttered, some intrigued, others confused.

A few businessmen clapped, already taking notes on the entrepreneur's nametag.

James? He yawned.

He lifted his small microphone — the one that let his voice carry through the entire hall — and lazily drawled.

"So, let me get this straight… your product solves a problem no one has while creating a new one: explaining to your guests why your toilet paper dispenser is judging their wiping technique."

Silence.

Then — laughter. Loud, ruthless laughter.

The entrepreneur's face burned red.

James sighed with zero sympathy.

"Brilliant. Now, get out."

Tears welled in the young man's eyes as he clutched his item and ran from the stage.

Another contestant — a young woman — stepped up, holding a sleek, blue tie.

"This tie…!"

She spoke with enough confidence to move a mountain.

"Uses AI to adjust its knot and color based on your outfit and the occasion! The ultimate fashion accessory!"

Some polite claps followed.

James? He looked as unimpressed as ever.

He raised the mic again.

"So, it's a tie that's smarter than the person wearing it? What's next? Shoes that walk for you because you're too damn lazy to move your feet?"

The young woman's face paled.

James tilted his head with that same casual expression.

That face that said — life is easy if you're not dumb.

"If you want to waste anyone's money, sell your father's property and start there."

Tears slipped from her eyes.

She turned and bolted.

Murmurs spread through the hall.

"He's being way too harsh…"

"That was too much."

"This is ridiculous. They worked hard!"

James leaned back, completely unbothered.

Ada, waiting with the second batch, swallowed hard.

She stared at James—at the cruel smirk, the effortless way he cut people down.

"Wow…" she whispered.

Her heart pounded.

She shut her eyes and prayed — prayed — that he wouldn't notice her or her product in the slightest.

･･･

James slouched deeper into his chair, half-listening to the murmurs around him. After disqualifying thirty participants, he was officially bored out of his mind. His fingers idly scrolled through his phone until a notification popped up.

[MythosNet has been fully downloaded.]

James raised an eyebrow.

"Huh? Some crypto app?"

He clicked on it, half-expecting to see some scammy NFT monkey collection.

Instead, the screen flashed.

[Congratulations! Prince Arthur of Camelot has added you to the group — "Tales of Old."]

James squinted at the screen.

"An app that just throws you into random chat groups? No accept or ignore? Yawn. Zero stars."

He tapped open the chat and was immediately greeted with a system message.

[You're now a new member! Say hello to everyone!]

James sighed. Already, people were typing.

[Fafnir: ?]

[Amaterasu: A new member? After a whole year? I honestly thought Prince Arthur wasn't taking his community admin role seriously anymore.]

[Loki: Tch. We should've just made me the admin. I'd do a way better job than that useless prince.]

[Thor: Absolutely not. You're still on a tight leash after hacking Odin's account for a meme coin scam. 😤]

[Loki: That was ONE friggin' time!]

James smirked slightly, but then the chat took a nosedive.

[Loki: Anyway, who's the newbie? What Universal Archive are they from? What magic rank? Hope it's not another Elder Mage or Rune King, tch!]

[Zeus: More importantly, what's their gender? Are they a maiden? If so, please announce your three sizes and send cute feet pics. I'll send something fun in return. 😉]

[Fafnir: Oh no…]

[Zeus: What's wrong with my app? Wait—why can't I send pictures? Damn it.]

[Thor: Oh. 😅 I suggested adding an auto-censorship feature that deletes… certain images before they spread. Looks like it's working.]

[Zeus: WHAT?! ⚡⚡⚡ This is an ADULT group! Everyone here is over 21, so why the censorship?!]

[Amaterasu: The censorship is only on you, Zeus. We've had enough of your 'Thunder Daddy' dick pics. Try shaving that slab of meat for once.]

[Zeus: Oh, sweet Amaterasu, don't act like you don't enjoy them. Weren't you just in my DMs the other day asking for a nice pic of my sweaty, divine balls covered in my white hairs of wisdom? 😏]

A screenshot dropped.

[Susanoo: … Wow, sister. Never thought you'd be like this. I'm… surprised. A little disappointed too.]

[Amaterasu: THAT'S NOT ME!]

Barely anyone was convinced.

[Tsukuyomi: Sister, it's okay to be sexually active. Many women have passion that burns as hot as the sun… pun intended.]

[Thor: Actually 🤔… judging from the screenshot… this is probably Loki catfishing Zeus. And from the looks of it, he scammed a lot out of him. Damn…]

[Zeus: SON OF A—!]

[Thor: Ehhh, Loki's gone offline.]

The entire chat erupted in laughing emojis.

James stared blankly at his screen.

『These people are definitely jobless. Worthless bums with nothing better to do than roleplay in a group chat. And when they go on dates and get asked about their job, they probably say something like 'home surveillance agent'—in other words, unemployed.』

His judgment was set. But then… he smirked.

"If they're picking big names to roleplay, I might as well do it better."

James tapped his chin.

The key to roleplaying? Either pick a broken character or make one up and add abilities as you go — like that one kid on the playground who magically pulls out new powers every time he's about to lose.

Perfect.

Just in time, a message popped up.

[Prince Arthur: Uhhh @User-5635, can you identify yourself so I can change your name? I probably added you by mistake while drinking with Lancelot, but it's fine.]

[Amaterasu: So it was a mistake? And here I thought you were finally taking admin duties seriously.]

[Prince Arthur: Errr, my bad 😅]

[Amaterasu: Whatever 🙄]

James leaned back, glancing at the entrepreneurs whispering about him.

"Psycho."

"Demon."

"Heartless bastard."

That was mostly what he could hear.

Anyone else might have found it offensive, but for James, it actually sparked a great idea for his character.

His smirk widened.

James typed—

[I am Supreme Demon Lord Kang, ruler of the Eclipse Dominion World Ezevenio, wielder of the Black Imperial Sword Limas, and the one who tamed the Black Disaster Dragon Veligryph.]

The moment he hit send—

DING!

A voice echoed in his mind.

[Avatar successfully designed. You are now Supreme Demon Lord Kang.]

[Mortal soul has successfully been corrupted. You have evolved from Human → Lesser Demon → Greater Demon → Archdemon → Devil Lord.]

[New abilities acquired: Fire Magic, Formation Magic, Dark Magic, Soul Magic, Aura Magic, Spatial Magic, Sword Magic, Dragon Magic, Control Magic.]

[You have acquired a new title — Lord of Darkness!]

[Gender changed to — Genderfluid.]

[The host's age has been accelerated to 30,000 years.]

[New world created: Eclipse Dominion World Ezevenio.]

[You have acquired the god-grade weapon — Black Imperial Sword Limas.]

James blinked.

"… The hell?"

His phone buzzed.

But that didn't seem to concern him at the moment.

"Something feels… very different…"

His hand stretched down to grab his eggplant.

It was missing.