Deep at the bottom of the abyss.
My room was a highly comfortable place, a premium suite even within a place like Hell, where thick purple mist hung in the air and the despair-filled screams of sinners echoed like a soothing lullaby.
Originally, I was just a human girl.
Was it illness, an accident, or perhaps someone's malice? My memories of when I was human fell away a long time ago. All I know is that after various things happened, I died, and when I realized it, I was sinking into the mud of Hell.
There, thinking, "Ah, it's so nice and cool," I dozed for a few hundred years. For a human, a few hundred years might be a tremendous amount of time, but for me, it felt like nothing more than taking a slightly long nap on a weekend afternoon.
Before I knew it, the mud of Hell had granted me a new body, and I had become a slightly important and powerful devil - often called something like the Archduchess of Hell.
My bed is made of the rubble of a decayed ancient castle and beautiful white bones. Leaning against my favorite skull cushion, wrapped in cool black lace bedding, I was having a wonderfully happy dream.
In my dream, freshly brewed hot tea and sweet pastries made from ground-up souls were lined up on the table.
And yet.
"...Nn, ...kh, ...it is too bright..."
An unpleasant, terribly violent light pierced through my eyelids.
Such a vulgar and fiercely assertive "light" couldn't possibly exist in Hell. My soul rippled, making an unpleasant sizzling sound.
It was a discomfort akin to having muddy water dumped over my head right in the middle of eating the most delicious cake.
Slowly, and with absolute reluctance, I opened my eyes.
***
It was a vast, stone-built hall.
The ceiling was terribly high, and flashy, brightly colored glasswork was fitted into the walls. The suffocating scent of frankincense struck my nose, and I couldn't help but let out a small sneeze. I miss the calming scent of sulfur and rot from Hell.
At my feet was drawn a crest I had never seen before… a tremendously complex, terribly pedantic, and nauseatingly holy magic circle.
"Oh...! A success! The Legendary Hero has finally appeared!"
"Look at this translucent silver hair! Though clad in a jet-black dress, what a divine and pitifully lovely figure...!"
Looking around, old men in luxurious vestments and knights clad in polished metal armor were weeping with joy.
Hero? Legend?
I have absolutely no idea what they are talking about.
I was supposed to be taking a pleasant nap in my room in Hell, having a dream about a lovely tea time.
I straightened the hem of my favorite dress, which had gotten rumpled, and slowly stood up.
Matching my movements, the magic circle at my feet cracked with a high-pitched snap, and the spell formula began to turn black. The structure of the magic circle they had woven was far too childish from my perspective. It looked like a doodle drawn by a child with a tree branch.
"...Um, excuse me. Where might this be?"
I asked as politely and courteously as possible.
At this, an old man with a magnificent beard, wearing a large crown and sitting on a luxurious chair in a slightly elevated position, leaned forward excitedly.
"Oh, beautiful Hero! I am the King of this Eldora Kingdom, Richard III. Our country is currently facing the crisis of ruin due to the invasion of the evil Demon King's army. Following the ancient prophecy, we sacrificed the lifeforces of mages across the country to summon you, the one with the strongest soul from another world!"
The strongest soul.
Well, that much might be true. I've had quite a lot of high-quality "snacks" in Hell, after all. The density of my soul is likely incomparable to the people of this world.
But, summoned? Completely ignoring my will, without permission?
"Summoned... In other words, you forced me to come here. Is that correct?"
At my quiet question, the King nodded proudly, as if it were a matter of course.
"Indeed! It is the ultimate spell, risking the fate of our nation. You should be grateful, for as the hero who saves this world, your name will be carved into history for generations to come! Now, use that power to defeat the hated Demon King!"
Be grateful. Carve my name into history. Defeat the Demon King.
The moment I heard those words, a very small, yet decisive snap echoed within me.
Ah, that's right. Even when I was human, the type of people I disliked the most were these "selfish people who force their own conveniences onto others."
In the first place, why should I have to sweat and toil for complete strangers? All I want to do is drink delicious tea and live quietly.
When I happened to look up, there was a giant skylight in the hall's high ceiling. From it, a pale, cold moonlight illuminated me like a spotlight.
The coldness of the moonlight was a little similar to the air of Hell, and it calmed my heart just a tiny bit.
Bathing in the moonlight, I smiled sweetly.
It was my absolute best smile, the kind that would make the devils of Hell scream and flee at top speed if they saw it.
"...I see. So, you all disturbed my peaceful sleep, kidnapped me by force, and on top of that, you are ordering me to 'fight for our sake'?"
"I am not ordering you, this is an honor... wh-what is that black mud at your feet!? The spell formula is rotting!"
As I took a single step forward, my shadow writhed like a creature with a will of its own, eroding the hall's floor at a furious pace.
The pure white marble melted into slush, and the beautiful tapestries adorning the walls instantly faded and decayed. The holy presence that filled the hall was, in an instant, overwritten by the thick stench of death.
"Hii, ...ah, the air is, so heavy...! I can't... breathe...!"
The knights in their polished armor collapsed to the ground one after another with the clatter of metal, beginning to claw at their own throats.
Naturally. My magic power is the very essence of the dense miasma from the bottom of Hell.
To the people of this light-filled world, my merely breathing here constitutes a lethal dose of deadly poison.
"Old man, let me tell you one thing."
I walked as if gliding across the moonlit floor, advancing right before the trembling King's eyes.
A few royal guards desperately tried to draw their swords, but my own shadow crawled up from their feet, entangled their limbs, and silenced them by grinding their bones to dust.
"I am no Hero. ...I am just a devil who was living very happily in Hell."
I gently traced my thin, white fingertips over the chest of the King, whose eyes were wide with terror. Thump-thump, an incredibly fast heartbeat transmitted to my hand.
"Therefore, I shall do a little cleanup. Because rude people must be tidied away properly."
"W-Wait...! Gyaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"
The King's body was swallowed by black rose vines that erupted from within him.
The scream lasted only an instant. Instead of fresh blood, beautiful black-purple petals fluttered down into the moonlight.
A few seconds later, there was not a single "living human" left in the hall.
All that remained was silence, the cold moonlight, and a terribly tasteless "Garden of Death" left in my wake.
"Phew... It has gotten a little quieter, hasn't it."
Because the luxurious crown rolling on the floor was in my way, I kicked it into a corner with the tip of my toe. A hollow clatter echoed.
Looking out the window, a peaceful-looking royal capital streetscape spread out before me.
But since the center of the castle had ended up like this, it would likely get noisy very soon. Being chased and fighting… I'm sorry, but it's far too much of a bother.
"Now then, I must look for a way to return home. ...But before that."
I looked down at the former mages who had been turned into black rosebuds.
I'm thirsty. Being rudely awakened has left me with an unbearable craving for something terribly sweet.
Speaking to no one in particular, I murmured elegantly.
"I wonder if there is a shop around here that serves delicious tea and cake? The light in this world is a bit too strong and hurts my eyes... but I do hope their tea culture, at least, is well-developed."
Under the moonlight, the unwished-for otherworld wandering chronicle of the Archduchess of Hell quietly opened its curtains.