The Devil Is a Part-Timer!, Vol. 1 by Satoshi Wagahara Read Free Book Online

moment, Emilia’s face betrayed her inability to comprehend the question. Then, she let out a haughty, nasal laugh.



“You said I could toss it out once I was done. So I did! I made sure to thoroughly mutilate it before I did, too.”
    “Oh, that’s just
mean
!”
    The anguish was sincere, from the bottom of his heart. Thanks to all the neighborhood cleanup efforts around Shibuya ward, it was growing difficult to find abandoned umbrellas lying around.
    “And why would a Hero such as myself gleefully accept an umbrella from the Devil King himself? May my family be cursed for generations if I did! I’d never keep such a putrid, tainted cancer near me for even a
second
!”
    To prove the point, Emilia took out a handkerchief, one in a strangely cutesy pink color, and began to wipe her hands.
    “I am the sworn enemy of the demon race and all that take comfort with it. Starting tomorrow, you’d best watch yourself on the streets at night!”
    With this final, rather unheroic flourish, she disappeared into the Hatagaya night, her footing still a bit unsteady.
    “…Well,
that’s
all I need.” The Hero had pursued the Devil King across multiple worlds. But why? It hardly seemed like anything important had happened at all. His even still had work tomorrow.
    The day was already starting to break as he muttered to himself on the way back home.
    “Man, Ashiya’s gonna be
pissed
if he hears that girl is here. Maybe I should keep it under my hat for a while.”
    He found out the next morning.
    Since Maou’s shift began in the afternoon, this meant the secret was revealed as they were eating the plain omelet—no filling, no ketchup, no nothing—Ashiya made from the slightly distressed medium-sized eggs he’d purchased at discount last night.
    The two of them exchanged glances as the doorbell rang. MHK had just visited the previous day. The assorted newspaper salesmen had long since given up on the place.
    The rent and phone bill were deducted straight from their account. Which meant that it had to be some new door-to-door solicitor.
    Neither bothered to even entertain the possibility of any mail or packages addressed to them. That was reality for you.
    “Yes? Who is it?” Ashiya called out from behind the door. They couldn’t pretend to be out; the kitchen’s ventilation fan was running.
    “‘Who is it?’ Well, thank you
very
much for such a polite greeting! I’ve found you, Alciel! Last of the Four Great Demon Generals!”
    Maou choked in response. Scrambled eggs flowed down his windpipe, throwing him into a coughing fit that sprayed bits of egg up into his nose. It was both an agonizing and rather nonthreatening response.
    “Wh-who’re you?!”
    In an instant, Ashiya jumped away from the door, ready for battle.
    “Who? I believe the last time you asked me that, we were battling each other in Devil’s Castle. You haven’t forgotten, have you? The name of the Hero, Emilia Justina?”
    “The Hero Emilia!”
    Panicked, Ashiya turned toward Maou, who was tearing up as he tried to unclog egg fragments from his own nostrils.
    “Now, come! Open this door and prepare for your destined fate!”
    It was difficult to believe, but there was no one in Japan besides Maou who would know the name Alciel. He had had concerns about being pursued by potential Devil King assassins, but who could have expected the Hero herself to reach them first?
    The reality of the situation threw him at first, but even now, Alciel was the most gifted of the demon forces’ strategists. He had an insider’s knowledge of every one of Emilia’s moves, and he already boasted a full grasp of his enemy’s weaknesses.
    Checking the lock on the door, Ashiya slid the chain into place, shut all the windows that looked into the outside corridor, and turned off the ventilation fan. “Your Demonic Highness! It’s the Hero! The Hero is here!”
    “Ah…! Wait! Alciel, wait! I’m telling you, open up!”
    There was a tone of panic to the Hero’s