I'm a Villainess, But So What? Fuck Off.

The Games Begin

I placed my hands on the rail and looked down at my new subjects from the balcony of the Castle.

The ones positioned closer to me looked like humans, in all shapes and sizes, except for the vague aberration of horns atop their heads, sharp and dull, windy and straight, long and short, and the tails with a pointy arrow on the tip tucked into their shirts, waving around wildly, showing that they wanted to go home and get this over with. They were the high-ranked demons, the nobles, if you will. They were made of pure miasma or pure demonic flesh.

The ones in the back were, essentially monsters. Dark and disfigured creatures, restless and wild, with simple minds that might not even be able to comprehend the situation they're in, that their form of rebellion, their restlessness, was fully laid out in front of their soon-to-be new ruler. They were clearly the bottom of the barrel, the low-ranked demons, the ones who were made of nothing but dirt and miasma in Aruln Forest.

"Hear me, demons!" I announced with my newly acquired demonic voice. They didn't shut up, though, and just continued with their pointless chattering. I smiled expressionlessly, just like Mother (she would be so proud), and shouted again, using wind magic. "HEAR ME, DEMONS!" The sheer volume of my statement caused some low-ranks to fly away. They finally quieted down.

"I, Alice Enthu Novea, have been chosen as the new Devil!" I grinned. "I will rule you all with my best foot forward. Demons, as your ruler, I shall allow you to roam freely in the world!"

Mutters and clueless faces. As expected, every time the demon race was summoned from Hell, their mission was always revenge. "In exchange, however... you all must not attack the human race! We will live in harmony!"

"Does anyone have any objections? If so, raise them now!" Murmurs rose up within the low-ranks, while the high-ranks simply looked uninterested.

"She's just a human..."

"Not attack the human race?! That wench, she's just a weak girl, she dares to oppose us?!"

"We got another human?"

"She looks so weak..."

"She is a girl, after all. I doubt she'll be able to hold up 'till the end of the month..."

My perfect smile miraculously stayed, and my eyes instantly gravitated to the pests - sorry, I meant specks of dust - that said that statement, along with his friends. Hmmm... about... a thousand low-ranks. I can afford to kill them. Sexist scum like them should just die, anyway, there's really no problem.

My smile evolved into a wider one, showing my white, flawless teeth. [ପ୍ରିୟ ଦେବୀ, ମୋତେ ବିରୋଧ କରିବାକୁ ସାହସ କରୁଥିବା ପ୍ରାଣୀକୁ ମାର | ସମସ୍ତ ଇତିହାସରେ ସେମାନଙ୍କୁ ଭୟଙ୍କର ମୃତ୍ୟୁ ଦିଅ | ସେମାନଙ୍କୁ ଜାଳେଣି ପଠାଇବା ପୂର୍ବରୁ ଏକ ସହସ୍ର ବର୍ଷ ପାଇଁ ସେମାନଙ୍କୁ ଯନ୍ତ୍ରଣା ଦିଅ].

Nothingness enveloped those low-ranks. Ear-shattering screams soon came. The other demons looked at their former comrades in horror as they watched the process unfold. And after a minute, they were all incinerated, with nothing but miasma and piles of dirt left.

It may seem like a minute to me, but in truth, they felt an eternity of pain with each passing moment in the world. As they deserved.

"Any more... objections raised? Hmmm?" I glanced at the crowd underneath while extending the palm of my hand towards them with a mocking smile plastered onto my face.

"Good. Then let us truly begin the Games."

----

Demons had a rather... peculiar style of acknowledging their monarch, if I may say. Unlike the human, elf, and beastman races' coronations, where there was a celebration, a feast, a crowning, and all of that boring, smiling shit... demons had a tried-and-true method of their crowning. It was called the Games.

First, the Speech. The ruler candidate, who inherited the past Devil's miasma, had to present their speech in front of the entire race, and win their favor. The ones who questioned the new ruler had to be silenced by said ruler, not their own race. Ways of elimination had to make the rest of the race fear the candidate. If not, the ruler failed, and they would never get the crown. Elimination methods could not utilize Devil miasma; but candidates could use their own magic, weapons they owned, and the fleet they commanded (that could not include demons, could only include other races and/or animals that were not considered a race). Methods of making demons fear the candidate included fast torture, slow torture, physiological torture, physical and mental abuse, and other vicious attacks. But, if the ruler failed to eliminate the said opposition and make the rest fear them, they would never get the crown.

Second, the Chair. Although it was called a chair, in reality, it had nothing to do with sitting down. In fact, it was quite the opposite. The ruler candidate had to gather rare, and sometimes mythical, ingredients from outside sources. Again, no outside help. The candidate was not permitted to use any crafted or otherwise refined materials that have already been made. They could only use raw materials from the Aruln Forest. After returning to the Dais with their ingredients before the time limit, they are required to refine them and create a one-of-a-kind, unconventional torture device. If the general demon population is not impressed with the candidate's work, the candidate is required to prove their device by being tortured by the device themselves. Again, if they die because of their torture device, or if they resist the torture, then they would never get the crown.

Finally, the Duel. The Duel, like it sounded, was a duel. Obviously. The candidate was put against another, until the rest either forfeited or was knocked out of the designated area that was outlined. As always, if they died, they failed. Now, I know what you're thinking. That's too easy, right?

Well do I have a little something for you! Demons would only accept a ruler that was far more powerful than them. And what I mean by 'them' is, far more powerful than the entire population combined. So, the 'other' person against the ruler candidate was none other than... everyone! All demons assemble, try to kill the ruler! Skin them to nothing but bones! Burn them alive! Anything goes in the Duel. Now, why, you may ask, would demons try to risk their pride, and maybe even their life, on testing their new ruler? Why don't they just let them pass? Well here's why. If a demon manages to defeat the candidate... then they would automatically be crowned. Shortcut! No Duel, no Chair, no nothin'.

Ohhh, I so do love demonic culture. So poised, so elegant, so... utterly... gruesome!