Spare Me, I’ll Do Anything

She did not hate her former subordinates for their so-called “betrayal.”

Vivian gazed at the rapidly cooling corpse, its expression frozen in ultimate agony, but felt no hatred in her heart for any “betrayal.”

The moment the world’s strongest Hero, Lucia, defeated and captured her, in everyone’s eyes, including her own, the Demon Lord of Evernight, Vivian, was already “dead.”

Her domain, her army, her people… when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter.

To seek new shelter for survival was a natural instinct under the cruel laws of the Demon Clan.

What right did she have to blame these former followers who were merely struggling to live?

She even… understood them.

“My old subordinates, huh?”

Vivian mumbled to herself.

It seemed she couldn’t just leave so easily.

Her former subordinates, even if only a small portion of them, were a crucial force for rebuilding her domain and power—after all, having something was better than nothing.

If she wanted to secure a place for herself in the future, the strength of a faction was essential.

Things like equipment, money, intelligence, and potions didn’t just sprout from the ground for free.

“On the way back, I should rally my old subordinates as well, if I can…”

Vivian thought to herself, glancing at the ill-intentioned people around her.

“Damn it! Could this woman be a demon spy? He just suddenly died!”

A priest shouted resentfully. “This was a demon scout we worked so hard to catch! If we were lucky, we could have interrogated him for a lot of useful intelligence! That’s tangible merit!”

“…Please don’t slander me. The priest from Taran’s team has already vetted me, and my adventurer’s emblem can also prove my identity.”

Vivian frowned as she looked at the priest who had spoken out, a man clearly driven by ambition. Her tone was filled with complaint. “And please don’t blame me! There’s nothing I can do to stop someone from destroying their own demon core! Not to mention this demon was already on his last breath from the Holy Light burns. It’s perfectly normal for him to die at any moment!”

“Miss Nannali is right.”

At this moment, the priest who had inspected Vivian earlier stepped forward and spoke in a deep voice.

“I have already examined Miss Nannali. Whether it was [Divine Detection], [Malice Detection], or [Alignment Detection], Miss Nannali checked out fine.”

“…If that’s the case, Father Rocky, then fine.”

Hearing the bull-like priest speak, the others had no choice but to back down and cease their accusations against “Miss Nannali.”

“We’ve troubled you, Miss Nannali. Please, go and rest.”

“…Alright.”

Vivian put on a slightly displeased expression and followed Taran out of the room, returning to her own tent to rest.

…To be honest, Vivian’s original plan had been going quite well, but then this suddenly happened.

It truly soured her mood.

Vivian couldn’t forget the intense emotions from Gulan as he died.

Though he was still filled with reluctance and attachment to the world, he had resolutely chosen death, using the most painful method to indirectly swear his loyalty to Vivian.

“Isn’t this just forcing me into a debt? I don’t like owing people things.”

Vivian murmured to herself. Before long, Lunai quietly reappeared beside her.

“My Lord, is something wrong?”

“It’s nothing.”

Seeming to notice Vivian’s foul mood, Lunai asked cautiously. In response, Vivian let out a breath, relaxing her mind a little.

“It’s just that the plan has changed.”

“Eh?”

Lunai let out a cute, confused sound.

“It seems a considerable number of my old subordinates have been thrown in here.”

“Ah?”

The little succubus let out a cry of disbelief.

“My Lord, are you saying that everyone was thrown onto this battlefield?”

“Yes… After my defeat, the demons who originally belonged to me could only find their own way out. But clearly, the Demon Lords who ‘took them in’ didn’t treat them as their own, but rather as cannon fodder.”

After saying this, Vivian couldn’t help but sigh.

“Evidently, the main force of this offensive is composed of my former subordinates. They’re being used as consumables.”

“I cannot tolerate this. So I must act quickly, pass through the human defensive lines as soon as possible, and return to the demon front to re-gather my old subordinates.”

“O-Okay! That’s great!”

After hearing Vivian’s words, Lunai was stunned for a moment, then she practically flew with joy.

“Everyone will definitely want you to return and lead us again, My Lord!”

“Sigh.” Vivian couldn’t help but sigh. “Lunai, do you think they might hate me? Hate me for being an incapable Demon Lord who lost to the Hero Lucia, causing everyone to be displaced.”

“That… How could they?”

Lunai blinked, her soft body pressing against Vivian again. “I heard that the Demon Emperor himself gave the order, and it took a joint effort of four Demon Lords to finally kill that Lucia! And you, My Lord, faced that monster all by yourself!”

As the little succubus spoke, her tone became increasingly exaggerated.

“Our squad was still on the outskirts of the Demon Lord’s castle back then, but your battle with the Hero was truly earth-shattering! We were completely stunned! We could feel that power of Holy Light burning through our very souls even from so far away!”

“…”

Listening to Lunai’s words, Vivian’s thoughts couldn’t help but drift back to the day she first saw Lucia.

The sky was torn in two by black flames and holy light. The earth trembled, as if it could be ripped apart at any moment.

However, the struggle was ultimately futile. In the end, that brilliance, as dazzling as the sun, swallowed all darkness.

The young woman shrouded in the dense power of Holy Light was so radiant, so captivating.

So dangerous.

‘I’m going to die.’

That thought popped into Vivian’s head.

Having played all her trump cards and still unable to achieve victory, Vivian collapsed to the ground, the tip of her opponent’s sword already at her throat.

The fear of death flooded her senses.

She didn’t want to die!

What kind of transmigrator gets found by the strongest enemy right after getting used to her new body! She still had a whole life ahead of her!

“Sp-Spare…”

Under the instinct for survival, Vivian opened her lips.

“Spare me! I’ll do anything!”

As Vivian uttered those words, trembling, she felt an unprecedented sense of shame from the depths of her soul.

The once lofty Demon Lord was now like a shivering little bird, without even the courage to resist before the mighty Hero—but what did that have to do with her! She just wanted to live!

And so, the former Bai An, now the Demon Lord Vivian, resolutely cast her shame aside.