Legend of the Crimson Demon

"Top of the devil, proud of the world—where I stand, there is heaven!"

"Those who chant my true name shall attain eternal life through reincarnation!"

"There is only one reason for your failure: you pissed me off!"

At school, Zunzun was attending P.E. class, and as expected, the curriculum was about striking victory poses.

The Crimson Demons' educational philosophy emphasized showing off before and after battle far more than actually winning fights. Naturally.

Zunzun had no complaints—if you did well, you got skill point potions.

But—

"Hmm... no, no. The lines are cool, and the momentum is great, but... something feels off. It's not that it's bad, it just feels a little forced. Like you're trying too hard. So I can only give you... 80 points."

The teacher's feedback dealt a heavy blow.

If it were Megumin or Yunyun, they'd scream that the teacher was clearly targeting them. But even the classmates were noticing something was off.

As Zunzun sat resting under a big tree, Arue came over.

"Zunzun, are you feeling okay?"

"…No," he replied quietly, shaking his head.

"You're tired, right? It's the tutoring. You've been staying late at school every day. That must be exhausting."

The teacher, noticing his desire to graduate quickly, had been cramming knowledge into him nonstop. But for Zunzun—blessed with a divine body—it wasn't physical fatigue.

"I think Zunzun is just anxious," Funifura said knowingly, shaking her twin ponytails like some all-seeing prophet.

Dodonko added with a teasing smile, "Well, Yunyun and Megumin are inseparable these days, and Zunzun is the school's number one. It's gotta sting when your two wives outpace you."

"…What did you say?"

"Nothing! Nothing at all." Dodonko grinned. "But seriously, Zunzun. Your eyes are red. You do know what that means for Crimson Demons, right?"

That meaningful grin was enough to make a man want to punch something.

Funifura crossed her arms and said, "It's underhanded, but honestly, the only reason we're the current top three is because those two graduated."

"Yup," Arue nodded solemnly.

The original Crimson Demon Trio was Zunzun, Yunyun, and Megumin—the legendary Zun-Yun-Min combination. Now, with two of them gone, the new trio was Zun-Funi-Ar. A downgrade, if you asked anyone.

"By the way, Zunzun—" Arue said suddenly.

"…What now?"

"Megumin and Yunyun's graduation ceremony is this weekend, right? We want to get them gifts. Any suggestions?"

"…Why are you asking me?"

"Aren't they your adorable wives?"

"HEY!!"

Zunzun barked, then after a moment of thought, replied:

"For Yunyun, anything is fine. She values the sentiment more than the price. As for Megumin… food's usually the best gift, but this is her graduation. It needs to have meaning, at least a little."

"Yeah, yeah, good point," Arue nodded.

They'd clearly already decided on their own gifts. Should he prepare something too?

Just then, Dodonko asked, "By the way, what's Megumin doing these days?"

"…Working."

"Working!?"

The three girls gawked in disbelief.

Though Megumin had shamelessly begged Zunzun to support her—and he had agreed—her actual dream was to find the magician who taught her Explosion Magic and prove she was the best Explosion Mage in the world.

But since she only knew one spell and collapsed every time she used it, she couldn't exactly go adventuring outside the Crimson Demon Village, which was crawling with monsters.

If she wanted to leave the village, her only hope was to save up 300,000 Eris for teleportation magic.

And Zunzun? He couldn't help much.

Sure, he had some pocket money. But 300,000 Eris? Way beyond his means. Maybe Megumin knew that too. She never even asked.

No—more than that, she refused to borrow money. The same girl who pulled every trick to scam Yunyun's lunchboxes drew the line at loans. She was a very principled moocher.

Upon hearing this, Arue burst out laughing.

"Megumin working a job… that's rich! Okay, let's go see her after school!"

Honestly, they were kind of mean.

Megumin had tried many jobs. But everything ended in disaster: magical clothes exploded at the tailor's, she couldn't hunt the required monsters for potion ingredients, and magic tool crafting was a complete failure.

Eventually, her last resort was waitressing at the only restaurant in town.

After school, the group went to the restaurant together.

"Welcome—!"

Megumin greeted with a bright smile—then froze upon seeing their faces.

Funifura and Dodonko immediately started snickering at the sight of Megumin in a frilly apron and maid outfit.

But still—she looked really cute!

Megumin squinted and forced a smile. "Good evening. May I take your order?"

"Pfft—!"

Arue nearly fell over laughing.

"You look so cute in that getup, waitress! Oh man—Megumin, the genius who used to look down on P.E. class, now smiling in an apron? This is priceless!"

"She even welcomed us with a bow! Wahahaha!" Dodonko added mercilessly. "You never even joined group activities before. You were always acting like some elite prodigy! Come on, smile again! Smile for us!"

Megumin's forehead twitched, and though she kept her smile, her pale knuckles gripping the tray betrayed her inner rage.

Still—she endured it.

She'd only gotten this job thanks to Yunyun's help. If this were at school, there'd be flaming wreckage by now.

Through gritted teeth, she said:

"Please. Order. Something."

Arue pretended to browse the menu. "What do you recommend, dear waitress?"

Megumin replied mechanically, "Today's specials are stir-fried seasonal vegetables and the juicy green onion duck set—"

"Then I'll have the river fish meal," Arue interrupted.

"I'll take the pork chop rice," said Dodonko.

You little—!

Megumin trembled, barely holding herself back.

Thankfully, Zunzun and Funifura both ordered the daily specials. That helped… a little.

Megumin stretched out her hand calmly.

"This restaurant requires payment before service. Please pay."

Arue and Dodonko exchanged evil grins.

"You mooched off Yunyun and the rest of us for years. Now that you're in the workforce, it's time for some divine punishment!"

"Hey, Uncle! Please deduct our meals from Megumin's paycheck!" Dodonko shouted toward the kitchen.

That did it.

Megumin's last thread of reason snapped.

"Blacker than black, darker than darkness… let my crimson light shine—!"

Without hesitation, she began chanting her Explosion Magic.

Moments later, the entire restaurant was vaporized.

Zunzun's sketch of Megumin in a maid outfit—something he'd secretly been working on—was reduced to confetti.

Of course, Megumin's part-time job was now officially over.

-End Chapter-

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