My Dad, the Demon King, Is a Big Problem

“Sniff… Sob….”

Huh?

Why am I crying?

As I regained consciousness, the sound of my sobs filled the air.

I was crouched down, my face buried in my knees, crying my heart out.

“Dad, come back… If you don’t, I swear I’ll chase you down in hell! You know I mean it, right?”

It felt like I had just said something like that.

Suddenly, I snapped my head up.

Blinking several times, my swollen, tear-soaked eyes adjusted to the light.

The first thing I saw was the full moon, shining so brightly it almost hurt my eyes.

As soon as the thought struck me that I’d seen this scene before, my gaze landed on the broken wall.

Shattered windows. Bricks crumbled like paper. And through the gaping hole, the night wind howled ominously.

I shot to my feet.

“What’s going on? What happened?”

I forced myself to think calmly, retracing my steps.

Earlier, I had been in the forest, where I encountered Meteor Pluto. I was trying to get away quickly, but he kept pestering me with questions, making it hard to escape.

Then, out of nowhere, low-tier Magi appeared behind him. From that point, I didn’t have time to think; my instincts had taken over.

I pulled Meteor away to protect him from the Magi, only to be struck by it myself. My hair and limbs were engulfed by the dark smoke before my consciousness faded.

In that moment, I… died.

“Yeah, I definitely died…”

But if that’s true, why am I awake again?

My heart pounding, I scanned my surroundings.

It was a scene seared into my memory.

How could I ever forget it?

This was four years ago, the moment my dad—Lloyd Delight—unfurled his magnificent black wings and burst through the wall, flying off into the night. I had chased after him in a panic.

But no matter how far I ran, I couldn’t catch a glimpse of him. After wandering aimlessly for what felt like hours, I returned home in tears.

“Dad, this is too much. Do you think this is funny? You think I’m going to enjoy this?”

“Come back soon! I miss you!”

I had been so sure he’d come back quickly, but he never did.

From the time I was eight years old until I turned twelve, I didn’t see him even once. That’s when he truly became the Great Demon King Baal.

“So why am I here again? Is this a dream?”

I dashed toward the mirror.

My shortened legs and tiny feet felt strange as I ran.

When I reached the mirror, I froze. My wide eyes locked onto the reflection. The instant I recognized myself, I clutched my cheeks and screamed.

“Ahhh! What is this? I’ve gotten so small!”

Under my round eyes, my nose was as tiny and plump as a cherry. My lips were adorable, my head small.

And my hair—thick, silky, golden locks that shimmered unnaturally for someone so small.

It was exactly how I looked when I was eight years old.

“No way!”

Slap!

I smacked my cheek.

The sharp pain was far too vivid.

“Ow! It hurts…”

Rubbing my stinging cheek, I took another look around. Everything was so clear, too detailed to be just a dream.

The broken wall was especially real, the sight making my chest ache.

“Could I… have traveled back in time?”

But how?

How could I have gone back to the past?

It was then that a voice echoed in my mind.

Dazzling letters appeared before my eyes.

Though it was a language I had never seen before, I understood the meaning as if it were instinctual.

“!”

What the hell is this?

<Name: Seo Da-bit>

Huh? Tutorial?

Possessor?

What on earth is this?

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

I had lived twelve years as Crescent Delight, the daughter of Lloyd Delight. I knew nothing beyond what I’d learned and experienced with my dad.

Crescent Delight—that was my name and my identity.

Seo Da-bit? I had never even heard of such a name.

I was Crescent, my dad’s beloved daughter, and I was twelve years old. Nothing else made sense.

<10%—In Progress>

<20%—In Progress>

“…”

Before I could react, vivid memories began flooding my mind like a rushing tide.

A girl with black hair, strikingly similar to mine, appeared in my thoughts.

Her name was Seo Da-bit, and she was sitting in a small room, playing games on her smartphone. Somehow, I knew exactly what game she was playing.

“Demon Realm Conquest—The Delight Project.”

It was a game about defeating Baal, the worst Demon King in history.

And Baal’s name before he became the Great Demon King was Lloyd Delight. He had a daughter named Crescent Delight.

That daughter… was me.

The memories of the game included me, clear as day.

I didn’t want to believe it, but the memories forced me to.

In the game, Crescent loses her father and dies of starvation. She doesn’t even live to see her twelfth birthday.

Years later, when Meteor Pluto turns eighteen, he defeats Baal once and for all.

And Baal’s final words before his demise were—

“My daughter… I couldn’t protect my daughter Crescent. I’m so sorry, my angel…”

“!”

<99%—In Progress>

As the glowing text faded, my vision swam with dizziness.

Seo Da-bit’s memories overlapped completely with mine. It felt as though I had been Crescent, but I had also lived as Seo Da-bit.

“So… I’ve been a character in a game called Demon Realm Conquest this entire time?”

It was hard to wrap my head around.

I was a game character?

Not just any character, but the daughter of the Great Demon King, doomed to die tragically at nine years old while searching for her father.

“The Delight Project” referred to the campaign to defeat Baal in the game.

That project involved countless characters, and players could choose to play as one of the key figures.

However, in the storyline, the true protagonist destined to defeat Baal was none other than Meteor Pluto.

“It was one of my favorite games…”

Especially Crescent. I had been so drawn to her tragic story.

Though she was nothing more than a minor character in the game, appearing only for a few lines, I had felt deeply connected to her.

Seo Da-bit’s father—he was also a well-known doting dad in their town. One day, though, he suddenly lost his memory and died.

To escape the grief of losing my father, I had buried myself in Demon Realm Conquest for months.

In the game, the one I had relied on the most—the one who had made my world bright—was gone.

I didn’t know how to cope with that pain. All I could do was cry myself to exhaustion, barely eating.

And then… I had died.

But now, I was living as Crescent.

***

"Wow. This is absolutely ridiculous."

I wandered aimlessly around the mansion, still feeling the cold wind blowing through the gaping hole in the wall.

Even though I had recovered Seo Da-bit’s memories, my identity as Crescent remained dominant.

After all, the twelve years I had lived entirely as Crescent, without any recollection of a previous life, felt far more vivid.

How much pain and loneliness had I endured after losing my dad?

The happy times I had spent with Lloyd—the Great Demon King Baal—were so real and irreplaceable that there was no way they weren’t truly my life.

Looking toward the empty space where the system screen had appeared earlier, I voiced my indignation.

"What is this? A tutorial? If it’s a tutorial, you should’ve warned me ahead of time! I thought it was my real life, and I almost died from how hard it was…"

Actually, I did die!

At that moment, the system screen reappeared, almost as if it had heard my complaint.

<‘Dragon Slayer Sylvester’ has joined the chat!>

<‘Yuri-loving Druid Gabriella’ has joined the chat!>

<‘From Maid to Saintess—Astina’ has joined the chat!>

"...What the hell is this?"

<‘Dragon Slayer Sylvester’ is thrilled to see you again after such a long time.>

<‘Yuri-loving Druid Gabriella’ asks how you’ve been.>

<‘From Maid to Saintess—Astina’ says she’s been eagerly waiting for you to finish the tutorial.>

<‘Yuri-loving Druid Gabriella’ comments that you’ve lived way too long in the tutorial phase.>

"…!"

What… is this madness?