Chapter 111: The Birth of the Demon King: Akane’s Awakening
by AfuhfuihgsPeople enjoy games in different ways.
Even when playing the same game, some aim to complete all achievements, others enjoy life content, and some prefer combat.
As for Akane, she played as hard as she could.
However. Here’s what you need to know: Akane is a streamer.
Even if she rose to stardom by presenting an unfiltered, natural persona, if that was all she had, she never would’ve made it to the top.
To describe Akane’s gaming style more accurately—it was about playing as hard as she could in the most entertaining way possible for her stream.
So then, what exactly does it mean to “play a game entertainingly for a stream”?
It varies from person to person, but Akane wasn’t the type to carefully plan her broadcasts in advance.
Her streaming style was more about instantly coming up with the most entertaining response to a given situation on the spot.
That’s why, as soon as Akane started ArcanePunk 1009, she learned magic. And became a Fixer.
It was a path available only to someone unaffiliated and completely free.
It might be unfair to others like Mai, but the truth is, Akane didn’t have any secret backstory.
She was born from an ordinary bloodline, a total outlier who just happened to be born with magical talent.
Thanks to that, no assassins came after her and her early game was a bit dull—but it also meant her growth was solid and steady.
Without any real threats, she kept getting quests, leveled up quickly, and learned a bunch of spells.
In games like this, magic was often scattered all over the back alleys anyway.
‘…This might not actually be a good thing.’
But that was only true for her in-game character.
From a broadcasting perspective, it wasn’t exactly thrilling to watch.
A few clips of ArcanePunk 1009 had already shown up in the highlights Akane often watched—and every one of them was fun.
Of course they were.
The game itself created crises, gave players choices, and provided character growth.
It was rare for a streamer to find a setup more convenient than that.
That’s why the other Novelive-affiliated VTubers were delighting their viewers day after day, while Akane… wasn’t.
Everything was going too smoothly.
Of course, relying solely on the game wasn’t enough to become a stream queen.
Akane was still delivering an enjoyable broadcast on her own merits—but something felt lacking.
To put it metaphorically, Akane had cooked a very tasty ramen using lobster.
She had made a delicious dish, sure, but she couldn’t shake the feeling of: ‘Did I really need to go that far?’
Playing ArcanePunk 1009, after Han Yurim had gotten her hands on it, and relying only on raw skill to entertain the audience—felt like a huge waste.
Still, even if she knew it was a waste, there wasn’t much she could do.
If all you have in the fridge is ramen, then you boil ramen. What choice do you have?
Akane muttered under her breath.
‘Normally, I would’ve set up some content by linking up with the others, but… maybe they’re too deep into the game now? Everyone’s just doing their own thing, so it’s hard to even meet them.’
In truth, the “Life Server” content wasn’t originally supposed to be like this.
The core concept was roleplaying your set character—acting like a character in a movie, essentially. That was the real draw.
But this version of the Life Server was completely different.
Everyone was too busy pursuing their own personal scenarios—what people called “bloodline secrets”—to even cross paths.
Sure, once people started clearing their personal quests one by one, it might go back to feeling like a typical Life Server.
But until then, Akane was stuck playing solo.
She muttered again.
‘Isn’t there any way to make this fun?’
And just then—
“You seem to have a lot of complaints about the world.”
Someone spoke to her.
Akane immediately became alert and scanned the figure.
The face was hidden under a black robe. Female voice. But it was a voice she’d never heard before.
In other words, this person was probably someone Akane hadn’t met before—likely an NPC.
Akane slowly opened her mouth.
“Akane doesn’t have any complaints.”
“That’s a lie.”
“Akane doesn’t lie. What do you want?”
There was no real reason to talk to someone who looked this suspicious, but she didn’t have anything better to do anyway. So Akane decided to keep the conversation going.
The stranger spoke.
“I know what you really want. You want to burn the world down.”
“Not even close. You’ve got the wrong person.”
It was an absurd and sudden proposal.
Burn the world down? She hadn’t even considered something like that in real life—let alone in a game.
The reason was simple: it just didn’t sound very fun.
But even after Akane’s firm refusal, the figure lifted a finger.
“That’s why your <Unique Magic> is black flame that burns everything, right? I know. I know the darkness in your heart, Akane. You must have felt lonely, being left all alone. But don’t worry. I’m here now.”
“…And who are you?”
“I am your darkness. Your true feelings. Your desire. Now, look within your heart. And find the urge—to destroy everything—”
“Wait… are you… Yurim?”
Suddenly, that thought crossed her mind.
‘Wait. Isn’t that Han Yurim?’
There are many ways to enjoy a game.
Even if two people played the same game, one might aim to achieve all accomplishments, another might enjoy the life content, and another might love the combat.
As for Akane, she played the game as diligently as possible.
But. There’s something you need to know—Akane is a streamer.
No matter how much she became a streaming queen by simply being herself without any pretense, if that was truly all there was to it, she wouldn’t have made it that far.
To describe Akane’s playstyle more accurately—she played the game as hard as she could in a way that was entertaining to the audience. That was it.
So then, what does it mean to play a game in a way that’s entertaining for a broadcast?
Everyone has a different style, but Akane wasn’t someone who meticulously planned her streams.
She would instinctively come up with the best response to whatever situation was presented and stream that. That was Akane’s style.
That’s why, the moment she started Arcane Punk 1009, she learned magic. Then she became a fixer. It was a choice only available to someone unaffiliated and operating alone.
Other participants like Mai might find it unfair, but Akane had no hidden origin story.
Despite being born from an ordinary bloodline, she was a rare case—one of those lucky mutants who just happened to have magical talent.
Because of that, no assassins came after her, and things were rather dull in the beginning, but her growth was steady.
With no threats to deal with and a stream of requests coming in, her level shot up, and she learned a ton of spells. In this kind of genre, magic was always lying around in back alleys anyway.
‘…This might not be so great.’
But that was only from the perspective of her in-game character.
From a streaming standpoint, it wasn’t a very compelling show.
Akane frequently checked Kirinuki, and already several Arcane Punk 1009 highlight videos had been uploaded—and they were all hilarious.
Naturally.
The game itself presented crises, gave you choices, and allowed for growth. For a streamer, it rarely got easier than that.
That’s why the other Novelive VTubers were entertaining their viewers almost daily, while Akane couldn’t quite do the same.
Things had gone too smoothly.
Of course, anyone who relied only on the game couldn’t become a streaming queen. Akane was still putting on a good show through her own talent alone, but something still felt lacking.
It was like making ramen—really delicious ramen—with lobster.
Sure, she made something tasty, but the thought wouldn’t leave her head: ‘Was there really any need to go that far?’
In other words, playing Arcane Punk 1009, a game Han Yurim had a hand in, and relying purely on skill to entertain the audience, felt like a huge waste.
But even if it was a waste, there was nothing she could do about it.
If all you had in the fridge was ramen, then ramen’s what you had to make. What else could you do?
Akane muttered to herself.
‘Normally I’d have gotten caught up with the others and found some juicy scenes for the stream, but everyone’s so absorbed in the game. They’re all focused on their own playthroughs, so it’s hard to even run into anyone.’
To be honest, the life server wasn’t supposed to feel like this.
The core of the content had always been to stick to your assigned roleplay and act like you were a character in a movie. But this time, the life server was completely different from before.
Everyone was too busy immersing themselves in their own individual storylines—what people called “the secrets of their bloodlines”—so they hadn’t even run into each other yet.
Well, once people started clearing their personal stories one by one, it would probably start to feel like a normal life server again. But until then, she had no choice but to play alone.
Akane muttered in her head.
‘Isn’t there something that could spice things up?’
And that’s when it happened.
“You seem rather dissatisfied with the world.”
Someone spoke to her.
Akane immediately grew cautious and scanned the person.
Their face was hidden under a deep black robe. Female voice. But it was one she had never heard before.
In other words, the person was likely someone Akane had never met before—a high probability of being an NPC.
Akane slowly opened her mouth.
“Akane doesn’t have any complaints.”
“That’s a lie.”
“Akane doesn’t lie. What do you want?”
There was no real need to talk to this shady person, but she didn’t have anything else to do anyway. So she figured, why not? and continued the conversation.
The woman said,
“I know what you want, Akane. You want to burn the world down.”
“Not even close. You’ve got the wrong person.”
It was a completely random suggestion.
Burn the world down? She’d never thought of that—not in real life and not in a game.
The reason was simple—it didn’t sound fun.
But despite Akane’s firm rejection, the woman flicked her finger.
“That’s why your [Unique Magic] is black flame that incinerates everything, isn’t it? I know. I know the darkness in your heart. You must’ve felt lonely being left all alone. Don’t worry. I’m here now.”
“And you are…?”
“I’m your darkness. Your true feelings. Your deepest desire. Now, look within yourself. You’ll find the urge to destroy everything—”
“Are you Yurim?”
Suddenly, that thought crossed her mind.
Isn’t that Han Yurim?
This voice was completely different from the Han Yurim she knew, but somehow, it still felt like her.
“……”
“Come now. Look into your heart. Let’s unleash that desire to destroy everything together.”
“What are you doing, Yurim?”
“Akane. I’m your darkness, not Yurim.”
“Darkness then. What are you doing?”
“I’m seducing you.”
Akane stared blankly at the… ‘darkness,’ who had just said that with a straight face.
It was strange. The Han Yurim she’d seen in Kirinuki had been much smaller.
This ‘darkness’ was only slightly shorter than Akane. Somewhere around the average height for an adult woman.
She was small for an adult, sure, but she definitely wasn’t the elementary schooler from the highlight clips. It didn’t make any sense.
She hadn’t created two characters—that wasn’t allowed by server rules.
So what was going on?
She was curious, but didn’t press further.
This was the life server. You had to respect others’ roleplay.
“Darkness, Akane’s not really interested in the world. Is there really a need to burn it all down?”
“There is.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s more fun that way.”
Fun. Those simple four letters shook Akane’s heart.
Han—Darkness quickly continued.
“Imagine it. A demon king suddenly appears in a peaceful city. Heroes rise to stop her. There’s always a market for this kind of story. Theaters would sell out in no time.”
“That’s true, but wouldn’t it feel too random to just torch the world without a reason?”
“Sigh. Akane. What are you saying?”
Letting out a small sigh, Han—Darkness calmly said,
“This is just a limited-time concept server. There’s no time to prep some grand backstory. You just go for it. Say you were left alone, got depressed, and decided to burn the world. Done.”
“Yurim, your RP’s breaking. Get back into character.”
Akane fell into thought.
Listeners often misunderstood, but Akane wasn’t roleplaying a hero.
Her RP was all about never giving up. Facing each challenge with a smile, as if she was excited for it.
So she didn’t mind playing the role of a demon king.
She’d take the role seriously and see it through to the end.
That was Akane.
“Still, I’d rather not go with some half-baked reason. I think I’d prefer a clear motivation.”
“Got it. Then let’s go with this—The world has entered a corrupted timeline. To prevent total destruction, the demon king believes everything must be returned to nothingness. A full reset.”
“I kinda like that.”
And so, Akane’s Demon King Army (with Han Yurim) emerged into the world.
Akane didn’t really do anything special.
It was because Han Yurim had already prepared everything.
“Darkness, when did you have time to set this up?”
“I came to my senses and it was already done.”
Akane had only seen her messing around with Mai in Kirinuki, so when had she prepped something this elaborate?
Han Yurim asked only one thing of Akane.
Become strong.
Become so strong that you’ll never lose to anyone.
“Wouldn’t that mean the Demon King wins?”
“Akane. The enemy needs to be strong for it to be fun. That’s just how games work.”
“This has nothing to do with Darkness, but… I don’t like it when games are too hard. It’s embarrassing to admit, but I once cried while playing a game made by Han Yurim. Akane’s not the type to cry, but the tears just came.”
“Oh dear.”
“It took me a whole week…”
It was hard. Especially the hidden boss that popped up at the end—it was brutal. She dodged every skill and still fought on just to beat it.
“That game developer has no chill. But if I had to guess, maybe the developer really liked Akane? Giving the protagonist that kind of hardship is a sign of affection.”
Akane half-listened to Han—Darkness’s nonsense, then focused on her training.
Thanks to the server’s maximum XP rate and following Darkness’s advice for optimal growth, she soon reached the Seventh Tier.
Seventh Tier. The realm of the great mages who could shake the laws of the world.
At that point, she had nothing to fear.
“Are you ready to burn the world?”
“Maybe.”
That day, Akane erased the Playmer family from existence.
And then—
“Mai-unnie, an event just triggered. What now?”
“…We stop it.”
Kurohina Mai and countless heroes gathered at the Demon King’s castle.
And even now, Mai’s mind was still in turmoil.
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