Demon King – Chapter 3 – Identity Exposed! The Demon Lord’s Great Crisis!

Regardless, the doors and windows were already locked, and there were security bars outside the windows. If someone really tried to break in, the noise would be loud enough to wake the entire building. Surely, those people weren’t that stupid…

And if they really did force their way in, well, Eiru would just beat them up. As long as she had enough mana, she could tank a nuke to the face without a problem—let alone deal with a few petty criminals.

Honestly, Eiru wasn’t worried about the people outside at all. All the precautions were just to avoid unnecessary trouble…

Back in bed, Eiru lay on her side hugging her plushie. She adjusted the position of her wings to avoid crushing them in her sleep.

She hadn’t always been this careful. One time, she rolled over in her sleep and broke one of her wings…

The pain woke her instantly. Looking at her limp, bent wing, Eiru had to grit her teeth and splint it herself using wooden boards. TL note: Yikes…

There was no way she could see a doctor about it—and even if she could, what doctor knew how to treat a wing ?

Thankfully, it happened while there was no school. She could stay home and recover in peace. Her Highness the Demon Lord spent two agonizing weeks healing…

Since then, she had taken her sleeping posture and wing placement very seriously. That kind of pain? Never again.

Once everything was adjusted properly, she used her tail to flick off the bedside lamp. The Demon Lord curled up and drifted off to sleep.

That night, several dark figures crept to the hallway outside Eiru’s apartment.

After confirming the hidden signal left by the scout, they didn’t choose Eiru’s place. Instead, they gathered in front of the unit directly across the hall…

At dawn, just as the Demon Lord was about to land a finishing blow in a dream, she got woken up—by an aggressive knock at the door.

Jolted awake, Eiru rubbed her sleepy eyes and slowly climbed out of bed.

“Anyone home?” The knocking grew more urgent.

“Coming…” she responded weakly, still half-asleep. Dragging her wings and tail behind her, she shuffled toward the door.

She unlatched the safety chain, slowly turned the lock, and gently opened the door… only to snap away from her shock.

Standing there was a police officer—with the landlord grandpa right next to him. The moment they saw Eiru, both men froze in surprise.

“Little miss, are you living here alone?” the officer asked politely, quickly recovering and crouching to Eiru’s level.

“She shouldn’t be. That delinquent Eiru is the one who lives here. No one else…” the landlord interjected before Eiru could say a word.

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“Then this child…” The officer stood up and frowned, eyeing Eiru curiously.

“I have heard that the delinquent kid lives pretty recklessly. Who knows what kind of girl he’s messed with. I feel bad—she’s such a cute little thing…”

Wait… what?! Did they just say that I corrupted… myself?!

No, no, focus! Eiru scrambled to think of a way out. She should’ve transformed back to her male form before opening the door… how was she going to explain this now?

“What’s your relationship with the resident here? Has he done anything to you?”

“Huh? N-no… just friends. I’m staying over for a bit. He’s not home right now…” Eiru, caught off guard by the question, fumbled her response.

“Not home? I saw him return yesterday—and I didn’t see him leave,” the landlord said, puzzled.

“Umm…” Eiru averted her gaze, tapping her fingers together nervously. She couldn’t think of a good excuse.

The observant officer noticed something strange—Eiru’s tail was twitching slightly behind her. At first, he’d thought it was just part of a cosplay… but now he wasn’t so sure.

Still unaware that her tail already gave her away, Eiru kept trying to think of an alibi.

“Sir, why don’t you go rest downstairs? I’ll just ask the child a few questions, then leave. Is that okay?”

Assuming the girl was just shy, the landlord nodded and went downstairs.

“Now then, little miss, may I come inside for a bit?”

“Ah… sure. Please come in…” Thinking that there was no harm in it, Eiru stepped aside and let him enter.

The officer scanned the room—nothing unusual. After getting Eiru’s permission, he sat down on the sofa.

“Would you like some tea? I can brew a pot…” Eiru was still extremely nervous.

“No need, I just have a few questions.” He waved it off before taking out a notebook and pen.

“Did you go out last night?”

“No… I stayed in.”

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“Hmm… Do you know what happened here last night?”

“No idea… Did something happen?”

The officer explained, and Eiru finally understood the situation.

Last night, an infamous burglary gang in the Eastern District had struck again. This time, the victim was the neighbor directly across from Eiru.

The victim had been severely injured and was hospitalized. Since they couldn’t give a statement, the police were conducting door-to-door interviews with the landlord’s help.

“So, you’re temporarily staying at the apartment of someone named Eiru, and he went out last night and hasn’t come back?”

“Yes…”

“Alright. One more question…”

“Go ahead…”

“You’re not human, are you?”

“??!” Eiru jumped back in alarm. “W-What are you saying?!”

“That tail of yours… it’s no prop. It was clearly moving earlier.”

“I… I… um…” Eiru was so flustered, she couldn’t even speak clearly.

“Calm down. Sit, it’s okay…” The officer gently tried to reassure her.

After a long pause, Eiru finally calmed down. Sitting quietly on the edge of the couch, she kept her distance.

“So, you’re really not a human, are you?”

“…Can you keep it a secret? I don’t hurt people…” Her voice was barely a whisper. The mighty Demon Lord was trembling like a scared kitten.

“When did you start living here?”

Still scribbling in his notebook, the officer asked as if he hadn’t heard the request.

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“Three years ago… You’re not going to arrest me, right?”

“That depends on your answers. I’ve never dealt with an intelligent non-human lifeform before.”

“Guuuh…”

“Also, since you lied, everything you said earlier is invalid. We’ll have to start over.”

“What? But I was being honest…” She looked up, voice louder now, trying to defend herself.

“You are Eiru, aren’t you?” the officer said bluntly, exposing her lie.

“…Yes.” Eiru lowered her head again, voice returning to a whisper.

“Age?”

“Sixteen.”

“Did you leave home last night?”

“No…”

“What were you doing at the time of the crime?”

“Sleeping…”

The officer continued with several more questions—mostly about her family and living situation.

“Final question: Have you seen or heard anything strange in the past few days?”

She was about to say no—then suddenly remembered the man she’d seen at the window, and the conversation she overheard.

“Actually… yes.” Eiru told him what she’d seen and heard.

She couldn’t remember the man’s face clearly, but the information was still useful.

“Thank you for your cooperation.” The officer stood up, ready to leave.

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“Um, I…” Eiru started, her tail swaying nervously.

Before she could finish, the officer tore off a slip of paper and handed it to her.

“My contact info. Call me if anything happens.”

“Eh? You’ll keep it a secret?!” Her tail now wagged excitedly, reflecting her relief.

“For now… we’ll focus on the burglary gang. Once that’s done, I’ll deal with your situation.”

“Ugh…” Eiru drooped, wings and tail falling limp as her mood plummeted.

The officer chuckled. “You’re too easy to read.” He reached out and gently patted her head.

“A girl living alone needs to be careful. Don’t let bad people target you. Call me if anything happens, okay?”

“…Okay.”

“By the way, are you going to tell your family?”

“I’d rather not. I’m not human… the fewer people who know, the less trouble.”

“I see. Still, I’d suggest telling them eventually.”

“Just saying—some problems are best handled by adults. You’re still a kid, after all. Sooner or later, something big will happen that you can’t handle on your own.”

“Remember—call me if you need anything.” He made a phone gesture and left the apartment.

“Thank you…” Eiru smiled as she watched him go.

Once the door was shut, she collapsed onto the sofa, completely drained.

After this scare, she vowed to never open the door in her real form again.

She had initially planned to sleep in on this lovely weekend morning—but after all that chaos, there was no way she could fall asleep.

And so, our Demon Lord—shaken and fully awake—headed to the bathroom to start her day…