"The next morning.

With the Confessional Hearing postponed, all cadets were given a few days off. As a result, the common room in the dorms was unusually crowded.

However, if there was one thing that particularly stood out, it was...

Ding Ding~

The continuous chime that rang in the air.

What followed after was a small voice.

-Don't let evil prevail! Let all evil be vanquished! A pure world is a good world!

"Pure world. Good world."

Theresa had a problem.

-No Evil shall live under the same sky as me!

"No Evil!"

She had developed an addiction.

An addiction that led her to stay up all night. Despite being made of energy, glaring black circles formed beneath her small eyes as her face glued onto the device in front of her. "....Evil bad."

Without her food, Theresa found a new alternative to be entertained.

She thought life would continue this way.

But she thought wrong.

"Nn? Theresa, can you lower the volume? People are trying to study here."

Evelyn was the first to complain;

"What are you even doing up this early...? Ung! Don't tell me..."

The realization suddenly hit Evelyn.

Click-!

Aoife came down the stairs. Brushing her silky long red hair, she frowned.

"She spent the entire night watching the show."

"What...!?"

"Just look at her eyes. They're all red."

"Now that you mention it..."

"Who was the one in charge of tucking her to bed?"

"It was Kier-"

Clank-!

The door of the common room burst open.

"Damn it, Theresa! I told you to go to bed after ten minutes! Why are you still up!"

"So it really was her..."

"Yup. She forgot didn't she?"

"That's it! No more show for you."

And so the device was snatched from Theresa's hands.

Perhaps because she hadn't slept all night, or perhaps because she hadn't expected them to

have such reactions, it took a moment for Theresa to process the situation.

She stared blankly at the recording that was now in Kiera's hands.

First food.

And now...

The man of justice. The fighter of all evil.

Super flying hero dog. The sidekick who helps the man of justice fight all evil.

They... were no longer there.

Who was going to save the world now?

...Is, this, the, end...?"

Theresa's knees trembled.

Thump.

And she knelt on the ground.

Despair was written all over her little face.

"Oh, this is bad. She's been watching so much drama that now she's become too dramatic."

"It's really bad. Kiera, damn it! This was supposed to be your task."

"I know! I know! I told her to turn it off and go to bed after ten minutes. I didn't expect her addiction to be this bad. With how dramatic she's being, she might as well be an actress at this point."

"Well..."

Aoife covered her mouth, trying her best to hide the tremble in her lips.

'I know a thing or two about that...'

Thump!

A loud thumping sound brought everyone out of their thoughts.

When they turned their heads, their eyes fell on Theresa who knelt on the ground on all four.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

"Evil..."

Theresa's fists came thumping against the floor as she wailed in despair.

"...has prevailed."

***

"So... Can anyone explain exactly what happened over here?"

The first thing that caught my attention when I returned to the girls' residence was Theresa

who was sprawled on the floor with a lost look.

It was as if the world had crumbled on her.

"Leave her be, Julien."

"No, that's..."

I couldn't exactly leave her like that. She looked like a middle-aged man who was going

through a mid-life crisis.

Just what sort of trauma did she experience to be like that?

"We've banned her from watching her show."

All my doubts were cleared by Aoife.

"She spent the entire night watching the show so we decided to confiscate the remote from

her."

"Ah."

If that was the case...

"Should we not have done that?"

"No, you did good."

It was about time we handled Theresa's addiction.

"We can't spoil her too much. Someone needs to regulate her."

"I'm glad to hear that."

And so the incident came to a close.

Without much thought, I headed for the nearby desk and took out my books. With me having

joined the Academy late, it was time for me to study.

I had a lot to catch up on.

***

Theresa lay on the floor, staring blankly at the ceiling. The world seemed to have lost its usual

color, and everything around her felt dark and bleak.

"...What am I living for...?"

Life seemed utterly meaningless at the moment. Evil presided over every corner of the place

she thought was her new home.

Oh, how wrong she was.

"Get up from the floor. It's dirty."

Blinking her eyes, Theresa slightly turned her head. Fake Daddy. Or so she called him. He was

the light that had pulled her away from the darkness.

...He was the one who brought her out of the place she once called home.

Her fake daddy.

He was sitting by himself at a desk scribbling something with his pen.

"Up you go. Your little protest has been going on for too long. It's already late in the

afternoon. Get up."

Her life used to be bleak before he came.

For the past two days, her hair and cheeks had endured numerous attacks she couldn't escape

from. From morning till night, she'd be under the evil clutches of whom she now referred to

as the three demon kings.

That was until he came.

'Stop that, can't you see she doesn't like it?'

'...Just because she is made out of energy doesn't mean she doesn't get annoyed by what you do.'

Life had been good since then.

His face was scary, but he had always been good to her.

He was her fake daddy.

...And yet.

"Justice Man." "No."

"...Please."

"No."

That very same fake daddy had betrayed her. He had joined the Demon Kings's side.

And so. Theresa did what she knew best to do.

Cross her arms and pout in protest as she lay on the floor.

"You know I can just lift you up, right?"

"?"

"I will if you don't get up now..."

"...?!"

"I'm coming."

"...!"

What a formidable foe.

Seeing that he really was going to move, Theresa gave up and stood up. Pouting once more,

she sat down on the sofa and crossed her little arms.

After that, this well-respected young lady continued her one-sided protest.

"...Hmph."

Of course, she had to let it be known that she was protesting.

"...Hmp-!!!"

The protest took an abrupt halt when snot came out of her nose.

"Do you need a tissue...?"

Theresa shook her head.

As if she was going to accept charity from the enemy.

"Do you really not want it? It's going all the way down your chin..."

"..."

Theresa hesitated.

No, she had to be firm about this. She couldn't let herself be corrupted by evil.

"Well, suit yourself. The tissues are next to me if you need them."

What a powerful bewitchment.

As expected of the man she once used to deem as her fake daddy. Even when corrupted, he was

powerful.

"!"

But that was when it suddenly hit her. Sitting up straight, she adjusted her clothes in order to

look as professional as she could.

With a determined look, she took a deep breath and took a step forward.

"Are you here for the tissues?"

Shake. Shake.

"Then...?"

"I will free you."

"Free me?" "Yes."

"Okay...? And how are you going to do that?"

"I will conquer them."

Brushing her hair back in an adult manner she composed her face to look more mature.

"When I do that, will you allow me to watch Justice Man?"

A look of realization suddenly crossed the corrupted fake daddy's face.

"Ah, I see now. Well..."

He fell into deep thought.

"...Hmph!" "Alright, fine."

Riip-!

Ripping a page from his notebook and scribbling a few things on it, the corrupted fake daddy

handed her the page.

What's this?

"If you manage to get all the girls to sign this page in agreement, then I'll give you the

remote back. Ah, get Leon's as well."

A quest!

A Demon King subjugation quest!

What an unexpected turn of events.

"...Is that okay?"

Nod. Nod.

Theresa retrieved the paper with both hands. She didn't expect to be successful, but it seemed

like the corrupted fake daddy hadn't been fully corrupt.

A look of solemnity replaced her pouting face.

So, in the end, it had come to this. She had known for a long time such a day was going to

come, but she hadn't expected it to come this early.

...The day that she would subjugate the Demon Kings. "Huu."

Theresa took a deep breath, calming her trembling heart.

She could do this.

She knew she could.

And so, she took a step forward. A step toward her great conquest.

"Ah, Theresa wait."

"!"

"Here. Your snot is drying up. Let me wipe it for you before it's too late."

But who would've thought she'd experience a setback the moment she took her first step?

*

'No journey starts off smoothly. All great heroes face setbacks.'

A quote Theresa learned from Justice Man over the past few days. As if to justify the setback

she faced during the start of her quest.

Theresa stood in front of a familiar door. The words [Evelyn] were imprinted right on that

very door. It had been a room she had frequented often over the past couple of days, but today...

Today the door looked towering. As if it would swallow her whole with one wrong step.

To Tok-!

Through her hesitation, she managed to knock on the door.

"Nn...? Theresa?"

Ha. The first Demon King had appeared.

"Is there something you need from me?"

"...Sign."

Theresa handed the piece of paper.

"Sign...? What for?" "Freedom."

"Ah?"

Evelyn, who was staring at the paper, suddenly looked up.

"Freedom?"

Nod.

"Freedom."

Theresa reiterated.

"What would a child like you know about freedom?...Wait a second."

But that was when Evelyn suddenly noticed the words written on the paper. She read them out

loud.

"Theresa 'show' permission slip. By signing this, I agree to grant Theresa the privilege of

watching Justice Man again... Hey."

Evelyn looked at Theresa.

"Is this the freedom you were talking about?"

Nod.

"Freedom."

"Oh? So freedom is being able to watch Justice Man?"

"...Um. Freedom. Human right."

Evelyn suddenly smiled, as if finding the situation amusing.

Theresa's eyes narrowed.

Evil witch.

"Ho~ When did you learn about Human rights?"

"...Give me back what's mine."

"Mhhh."

Evelyn placed her finger over her chin and pondered. But she eventually shook her head.

"I don't want to~"

Theresa clenched the paper.

"Why." "...How long did you sleep for?"

"I will sleep."

"You haven't answered the question. How long?"

""

"Exactly."

"So...?"

"I won't sign it. You need to sleep. You can't stay up all night watching Justice Man. Especially

someone as young as you and who is still growing."

"!"

Theresa's expression cracked and so did something within her.

As expected of a Demon King. They were a tough nut to crack. But it wasn't as though she was

unprepared.

She had spent the past two days studying and analyzing each of the Demon Kings. She knew

everything she needed to know about them. Their habits, their hobbies, their way of speaking, and...

Their weaknesses.

"Sniff... Sniff..."

"Eh..? Eh! Theresa!?"

"Snifff..."

"A,are you crying?"

Flustered, Evelyn rushed to Theresa and wiped the tears that were falling from her cheeks

with the sleeves of her cardigan.

"Hey... Hey, I'm sorry. I'm sorry Theresa."

"Sniff..."

"Oh, no."

Evelyn's eyes trembled. She hadn't expected Theresa to suddenly cry like that. She was

extremely flustered.

"W... ah, fine! Fine! I'll sign it! I'll sign it!"

"R,really?"

Theresa immediately stopped crying as she looked up with hopeful eyes.

"Yes! Yes! Give it here. Let me sign it."

After handing the paper to Evelyn, Theresa tried her best to stop her lips from curling up.

"Ukh."

Oh no.

Theresa covered her mouth with both hands. She had almost blown her cover with her laugh.

"Here you go... Don't cry anymore. Okay?"

"Um."

Theresa retrieved the paper and stared at the signature.

What an extraordinary signature.

The ink, gracefully etched on the paper, glowed beneath the ceiling lights, casting an

otherworldly aura that enveloped her surroundings.

If she could, she'd bask in the afterglow of the signature, but she knew she was pressed for

time.

Evil waited for no one.

And so...

She continued on her quest.

The first Demon King had been conquered.