"Revision, now! Don't you dare go home until it's finished!"
The shrill scream pierced through Arga's headphones. His bloodshot eyes stared blankly at the blinding monitor. The clock in the bottom right corner read 3:00 AM.
Suddenly, his chest tightened as if squeezed by an invisible giant hand. His breath hitched in his throat. His vision blurred into swirling black dots.
Then, his head slammed hard against the keyboard.
Darkness.
When Arga opened his eyes again, the first thing he expected was the sterile smell of disinfectant or the white ceiling of a hospital room.
Instead, the sharp scent of rusted blood and sulfur stung his nostrils.
The material beneath him felt incredibly hard and cold. Arga looked down slowly. He wasn't lying in a bed; he was sitting upright on a massive throne constructed from hundreds of human skulls.
[Wait... what kind of sick Halloween costume is this?] Arga's mind screamed in panic.
He tried to jump up, but his entire body froze. Right below the steps of his throne, two terrifying silhouettes were prostrating themselves on the black marble floor.
One was a skeleton in wizard robes, blue flames flickering in its eye sockets. Beside it, a two-story-tall orc giant knelt, clutching a blood-stained axe the size of a family car.
[If I move, that axe is definitely going to take my head off!]
Arga held his breath. Cold sweat poured down his back beneath the elegant black robes he was suddenly wearing. His face stiffened into a mask of cold stone, driven by pure, unadulterated terror.
The silence in the room was suffocating. The lingering tightness in his chest from the heart attack caused Arga to unintentionally let out a long, heavy sigh.
Haaaaah...
The heavy sound echoed through the pillars of the great hall.
The robed skeleton suddenly looked up. The blue flames in its eyes flared brightly, staring directly at Arga.
"I understand, Almighty Astaroth!" the skeleton rasped in a terrifying, hollow voice. "That weary sigh just now... you find the humans at the border city too disgusting to even speak of, don't you?"
Arga blinked in shock. [Huh? I was just catching my breath!]
The orc giant looked up as well. His yellow eyes were watery with savage admiration. "Of course! Your Majesty's silence is an absolute command! We shall not allow your eyes to be fouled by their pathetic existence."
The giant swung his axe into the air. "We shall raze the human city to the ground this very night!"
[Wait, don't kill anyone! We'll get arrested!] Arga screamed internally.
However, his jaw was too stiff to make a sound. Seeing their King merely staring at them with a gaze as cold as ice, the two monsters returned to prostrating themselves, trembling. They seemed to be worshipping the King's undeniable aura of majesty.
Arga slowly began to grasp the situation. This was reincarnation. A fantasy world. And most importantly, he was the boss of these terrifying monsters.
As long as he stayed quiet and looked cool, he would be safe.
[Thank God... at least I'm the boss here. Time to use this power to retire and rot in a comfy bed,] Arga thought, feeling as if the entire weight of his corporate life had been lifted.
Ding!
A sharp, mechanical chime rang inside his head. A blue holographic screen suddenly appeared, floating right in front of his face.
[Host Status: Astaroth (7th Demon King)]
[Level: 999 (MAX)]
[Power: Absolute Overpowered]
Astaroth's (Arga's) eyes sparkled with joy. [Sweet! This is a standard Isekai system! My level is maxed out! Easy life, here I come!]
However, that happiness lasted less than three seconds.
The blue screen suddenly flashed a bright, alarming red. The text shifted into a stiff, formal font, exactly like the disciplinary emails from his old HR department.
[Universal Conquest Executive System (SEPU) Activated.]
[Welcome, Executive Employee of the Gehenna Division.]
[Quarterly KPI Target: Conquer the Holy Kingdom of Solaria within 30 days.]
[Warning: If the KPI is not met, the Host will be subject to Termination Penalty (Permanent Soul Eradication).]
Astaroth's breath stopped.
His already pale face grew even colder and more grim. Shaken by the shock, a wave of dark aura accidentally exploded from his body, cracking the marble floor beneath the throne.
Malphas the skeleton and Goliath the giant, seeing this explosion of aura, pressed their foreheads even harder against the floor. They wept with emotion, seeing how 'passionate' their King was to begin the war.
Meanwhile, behind his expressionless, tyrannical mask, Astaroth roared in despair.
[Damn it! Why am I being chased by KPI targets in my second life too?!]
(Author's Note: Hello everyone! Welcome to Astaroth's life of corporate misery! Do you think Astaroth should resign now or just crush the humans? Don't forget to drop your Power Stones so Astaroth can finally get paid!)