The Master of the demon realm—the Corrosion Beast Sabnock—walked forward at an unhurried pace.
His blue fur swayed as he fixed his compound eyes ahead... Ignoring Rest and Lubeth, who should have been standing in his path, he pressed straight onward.
"GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Sabnock was a creature destined from the moment of his birth to be a "King."
He was born in the very heart of the land known as the demon realm.
His parents—a mated pair of Corrosion Beasts—had triumphed over their own kind and every other monster in the struggle for survival, claiming that ground as their birthing den.
Bathed in the rich mana that surged up from deep within the earth, five cubs were born. Immediately after birth, they turned on one another in cannibalism... and only the one who would later become King Sabnock survived.
"None in all of heaven and earth—none but myself."
Had Sabnock been capable of speaking the words of men, those would surely have have been on his lips.
Born drenched in vast quantities of mana, the cub devoured his siblings to further increase his power, grew rapidly in size, then killed and devoured his parents before striking out on his own.
From that point forward, it was a life of endless battle.
Day after day, he fought the monsters that coveted the demon realm's mana, killing them, devouring them.
Before long, the cub had grown enormous even by the standards of his own kind, and all those around him had become loyal subjects who worshipped him as their King.
Sabnock had built an unshakable position as the Master of the demon realm... but the next creatures he found himself fighting were beings known as "humans."
The demon realm was fertile ground for crops, and if one harnessed the mana gushing forth through specialized magic, the land could undoubtedly be developed into a thriving city.
Hoping to open up the demon realm, numerous leaders dispatched armies to attempt the subjugation of the "King."
Sabnock led his Corrosion Beast subordinates and crushed every last one of those arrogant humans who had failed to know their place.
"I am a King. To desecrate the King's domain is an act of insolence."
Sabnock did not attack humans for the sake of feeding. It was the pride of a conqueror.
Leaving humans who desecrated their territory alive would wound the dignity of Sabnock's kingship.
That was why they had to be driven out.
Thoroughly killing, crushing, trampling — it was necessary to teach these fools who trampled their territory a lesson about their place.
Sabnock's actions were correct. At least, that was what he believed.
Ever since he had started killing humans indiscriminately, none dared set foot deep into the demon realm they called home.
The Corrosion Beasts enjoyed roughly twenty years of peace.
"All right, let us move out. This is not enough. Bring me bigger prey to sink my fangs into!"
However, humans are creatures who forget their fear.
That day, for the first time in years, humans set foot into the Corrosion Beasts' territory.
It had been twenty years since humans had entered their domain. It was not an army — only a handful of people had come.
They could be ignored. Sabnock was far too busy to chase after every little insect that wandered in.
But — as if that were not enough — those tiny insects had the audacity to burn a wretched stench.
A peculiar scent that stimulated the fighting instincts of monsters — the foul smell of what humans called "monster luring incense."
Were they trying to lure them out and spring some kind of trap? How utterly disagreeable.
Only lower beasts without intelligence lost their wits to the monster luring incense.
To lump him, a King, together with such lowly creatures — what an act of supreme insolence.
"GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Sabnock kicked the foolish humans away.
He did not bother confirming whether they lived or died. There were more important things to attend to.
Humans had clearly forgotten just how terrifying a "King" could be, if they dared pull a stunt like this.
Just as he had done twenty years ago, he would kill, crush, and trample them... He had to make them understand once and for all that they were dealing with beings far beyond the reach of human power.
The King led his young subordinates out of his territory and marched straight toward the direction where the humans had gathered.
He decided to roam about killing at random, intending to teach them their proper place.
If the mood struck him, the royal capital, packed densely with humans, might just get crushed as well.
Two tiny insects appeared before the King the moment he left his territory and launched an attack.
They were insects that were at least capable of killing his subordinates.
He played with them for a while... but eventually realized it was a waste of time and decided to ignore them and keep moving.
"No matter how strong they are, insects are still insects. They can't possibly kill a lion."
He was the "King."
Whether insects clung to his feet, whether weak subordinates were killed... he could not afford to stop.
He was not the King because he walked the right path. The path was created after the King walked it — and that became the King's Road.
Sabnock pressed onward.
He sought to drive out the humans, solely to show them his path and for the sake of his own pride.
"[Star Eater]"
"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"
However... Sabnock was forced to halt almost immediately.
For the first time in his life, he let out a scream born of pain.
He quickly realized the cause of the pain... the insect he thought he had shaken off had somehow leaped back and landed on his back.
"[Star Devourer]"
"GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!?"
Once again, searing pain lanced through him along with that chilling word.
The black sphere in the tiny insect's hand had gouged out the flesh from the back of Sabnock — the "King" who ruled the demon realm.