Disclaimer: I do not own Kyo Kara Maoh.
Warning: None, I think.
Notes: I was actually reading about the duties of a maharaj in Wikipedia and thought, what if Yuri had one of these schedules thingy? What would it look like? The one about the maharaj was not as detailed as this and the poor guy only has four and a half hours of sleep! I couldn't do that to Yuri so I decided to cut him a little slack; he's still a kid, after all (I'm such a softy). I don't know how accurate my infos are about the KKM world, so my humblest apologies in advance if there are inconsistencies with this and the actual KKM. Written in Yuri's POV, first person, a narration.
A Day in the Life of a Demon King
littleladygoldie
Being the Great Demon Kingdom's new reigning monarch wasn't totally different from being an ordinary, non-royalty common folk, whether on Earth or here in this universe. Yes, there are some differences, but they are really quite minor. You might not believe me. I mean, a common folk and the Demon King? You could say there's no comparison between the two. Maybe this is better understood by way of a thorough a citation in a day in the life of a Demon King.
0600: I woke up via an alarm, like any ordinary non-royalty common folk, but only it wasn't like any alarm any ordinary non-royalty common folk should have, but instead a good and painful kick at my back side. After all the mornings waking up to this, I should have gotten used to it, but somehow I never did. The pain doubled when I remembered it was Monday; I hate Mondays! I dragged myself out of bed and got ready for my morning run with my godfather, Lord Conrart Weller.
0615: Like any ordinary, non-royalty common folk, exercise is one of the most important things to do during mornings. The sun was bright and warm. The air was cool and refreshing. The sky was clear and no signs of oncoming rain could be seen. I had my sweats and running shoes on. Perfect for a morning's exercise! My godfather was wearing his usual khaki uniform, sword by his side and leather boots on his feet. Actually, I never saw him wear any other clothing much; come to think of it, I never saw him wear anything else but the khaki uniform… well, there was this one time when he was wearing Big Cimarron's colors, but I shouldn't be delving into that right now. I felt pity for the man to be running in such uncomfortable clothing, but he insisted on wearing it, so I had to allow his poor choice of gym clothes.
0700: Feeling tired from running, but completely energized and ready to start the day, I headed over to the baths to wash the sweat and dirt that clung to me and to brush my teeth. Just like any ordinary non-royalty common folk, good hygienic habits should be part of the morning's routine; it was like washing away the yesterday to welcome a new day. Okay, that was a terrible comparison, but to me it's kinda like that anyway. The king's private bath was just like any other bath on Earth. Fine, so it was slightly bigger… alright, so it is way bigger than any ordinary bath that it could be mistaken as an Olympic-sized pool; and it was nicer… and it was exclusively just for the Demon King. So it wasn't really so ordinary, but a bath is a bath.
0730: Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and should never be missed. It provides nourishment to the mind and body and is a prerequisite to function as the Great Demon Kingdom's reigning monarch – or any ordinary, non-royalty common folk – for a busy day ahead. The appealing cuisine spread before me looked very appetizing and the aroma caused me to slobber. The cook absolutely outdid himself today; the meal was fit for a king (no pun intended)! Having my fill with all that tasty grub, I proceeded on to tackle my first task.
0800: I met with the nation's tactician, Lord Gwendal von Voltaire, to discuss the kingdom's defenses and overheads. The best way I could maybe compare this is like when you help your parents decide what to do to prevent your neighbor's branches or overgrown hedges from going into your lawn without setting off any hostilities on both parties. Or discussing with your parents why they should increase your allowance, but the only difference here was that we were not dealing with petty cash – and in the end, it was not my parents who would decide, but the king… which was me.
0930: The second task of the day was building rapport with the people of my kingdom, lending them my empathetic ear for their concerns and petitions to fall on to, which was more like hearing my friends relate their problems to me… but on a larger scale… much, much larger… waaay larger. Just like advising some of my problematic friends, which was actually quite rare when I thought about it, some issues could not be resolved right away and had to be mulled over scrupulously with the tactician or counselor later. Hearing other people's problems could drain a king – or any ordinary non-royalty common folk, for that matter.
1100: The third task for the day was meeting with the nation's counselor, Lord Günter von Christ, to go over with the matters gathered from the previous task. Sometimes when one is overwhelmed with too many issues at hand, it is best to approach a professional lest a wrong decision was made. You could say that it is like going to the school guidance counselor for a little help, because as the Demon King, I could only do so much. This way, I could prevent any mental breakdown if I were to handle the whole thing myself. Yeah, I am the king, but in an untrained eye, I could pass for any ordinary, non-royalty common folk on Earth… except that in the Great Demon Kingdom, black hair and black eyes could not pass for any ordinary, non-royalty common folk, no matter how untrained the eye is – and even we suffer breakdowns in whatever system in our body.
1230: I should say that lunch was the second most important meal of the day and all those tasks I had to assume as the Demon King had me working up an appetite. Forgetting my etiquette lessons, I quickly wolfed down my food, which was totally not so becoming of a suave king. But, I mean, who could really think of etiquette when you're starved to death, right? Nothing filled an empty stomach well like a home-cooked meal. Like breakfast, food was great and I sent my compliments to the chef and hoped that dinner would be just as great. Then proceeded to my fourth task.
1300: I sat in my office and felt happy that I didn't have to share with the tactician's office and knew he felt the same. It wasn't that I dislike the man, not at all. It just seemed like I was bothering him whenever I entered his office and there was just too much tension in the air when we're alone together that I could feel it crackling! Besides, I felt more at ease when no one's breathing down my neck while I'm on my desk, though the counselor tended to stay in my office to offer some help every so often; and the effort was deeply appreciated, really. This time was spent on writing letters of gratitude to other monarchs or aristocrats for gracing an occasion that had been currently held in the palace, much like thanking your guests for coming to your birthday party and giving you such wonderful presents, only you had to be extra tactful and use exactly the right words or else all hell would break lose if my message was misinterpreted in some way. Or reply to some requests that other countries had sent to me, to accept allies or deny them as gracefully as possible – but so far none was ever denied. To me, this felt much like responding to girls' love letters left in my locker… except that I never had one… so I never got the chance to accept or reject any. Let's just stray away from my pitiful Earth life, shall we? Writing the letters would take quite some time since my vocabulary was still rather limited, plus it was in Demon language, which made everything even harder than it should be. It is probably the same as taking a foreign language course.
1430: Together with the tactician, I met with the Great Demon Kingdom's official spy, Jozak Guriere to confer information that he had gathered; any war brewing, planned blackmails from other countries, or any other malicious threat directed towards the Great Demon Kingdom. To an ordinary, non-royalty common folk this is comparatively close to hiring a private detective to see if your lowdown, good for nothing husband was cheating on you for some unforgivable reason. Being such a burly man that Jozak was, it was surprising how he could fool others into thinking that he was a woman by simply dressing in a skirt and talking in a high-pitched voice. That was probably why he was the spy; he was a natural in the art of concealment. Though, I couldn't really say that he'd make a very pretty woman.
1600: The sixth task of the day I considered to be one of the most strenuous activities I had to undergo being the Demon King was training to improve my sword fighting skills that I helplessly suck at, with my godfather. Okay, so not all ordinary, non-royalty common folks go through with this or anything remotely similar unless, of course, they took up fencing or kendo lessons – like my mom, Jenfen. That's not really her name; her friends back in college named her that since she wanted to be called Jennifer – though her name's really Miko – and she was so into fencing, but let's put that aside for now. Unlike ordinary fencing or kendo lessons, there was no foil, épée, saber or whatnot; not even a shinai. I had to use a special sword – not because I'm a wimp that I had to use something different from the others, but because it is a Demon Sword… and I'm the Demon King of the Great Demon Kingdom… notice any similarities? Apparently, I'm the one who could use Willem du Soliel Eli de Morgif, that's the sword's name by the way and no, I did not christen it, after I salvaged it from some supposedly scalding lake. The weirdest thing about it is that it actually has a face – and it can talk! Well, not really. So far, his vocabulary consists of "ooooh" and "aaaah" and it was up to the listener to discern what Morgif meant by the moaning, though it usually helps if you just don't listen to it at all.
1700: Just like any ordinary, non-royalty common folk, I had to go to school. No, we don't have the Great Demon Kingdom University; it was more like home schooling with a private tutor. The counselor, which happened to be my teacher, Lord von Christ was one tough cookie. He really has very high standards with education. I admit, he really is smart and has memorized by heart almost all the contents of all the textbooks in the castle's library. I just wish he didn't expect me to do the same… I listened to his voice melding in my head, wishing that time could go faster. Can anyone really concentrate after such a hectic schedule? I was ready to fall apart!
2000: After what seemed like an eternity, I headed to the dining hall to have my late dinner to appease my grumbling stomach. Dinner was delectable as I had expected and I, literally, licked my plate clean. Feeling completely satiated, I proceeded to my next task.
2030: I hold with great importance the time I spend with my ten-year-old daughter, Greta, and, as much as possible, never miss this part of the day. She's not illegitimate; I adopted her – after she tried to assassinate me. I have not gone crazy; I really just have a soft spot for lonely and lost children, though I'm not saying that I'm going to start adopting all the lonely and lost children of the Great Demon Kingdom. Like any ordinary, non-royalty common folks, I also have the right to have children, be it adopted or through consummation… just not during the first fifteen years of their life. We played tag in the garden for a while then she made a crown of flowers for me to wear. She really is a sweet girl, if you just try to overlook the attempted murder bit. She also has this really cute pout every time she begs for an extra five minutes of playing time with her papa. Of course, who was I to deny the request?
2105: After tucking my daughter to bed and kissing her goodnight, I headed over to the infirmary to meet with the royal healer, Giesela, the counselor's adopted daughter, for my regular physical check-up. To any ordinary, non-royalty common folk, it was exactly like going to the family physician, only physicians on Earth don't have magic abilities; it may seem like one, but it's really just science. To rule a country, one must be physically healthy, right? They couldn't possibly afford a sickly king who might just suddenly die and leave everyone helpless. There was one and only way I was allowed to die and that is old age – after living a full and healthy life, of course. You'd think as a king, I'd have more control with decisions regarding my life – especially my life, but sadly no. After assessing from the tip of my hair to the nails on my toes and asking me a multitude of questions from how I slept to how my stools looked, I was declared healthy as a horse. Jumping down from the examining table, I buttoned my shirt and thanked her as I headed out of the infirmary.
2135: Even after all those lessons and duties as the king, it was amazing – almost unmerciful – how they could give me so much homework to do. They don't really know how to give a guy a break, do they? When doing homework as a king or an ordinary, non-royalty common folk, there's really no difference. Homework is homework no matter how you look at it. It was the part of the day when the castle would quiet down and the night was very conducive for studying… and sleeping, which I tried very, very, VERY hard not to do. I even had to slap myself awake and chuckled about the thought of marrying myself. It's something ordinary, non-royalty common folks wouldn't understand; the Great Demon Kingdom surely has strange customs.
2230: Having finished my homework, I headed once again to the baths to take my evening bath and brush my teeth. Taking a cool dip in the water partially washed away the haziness of sleep from my brain, with emphasis on partially. After donning on my blue pajamas there was one more task I had to do as the king of the Great Demon Kingdom.
2300: Opening the doors to the meditation room, I greeted my counselor who was also my teacher and who was also my spiritual guru. The man can really multitask if you ask me; it was almost inhuman. Well, technically, he's not even human, he's a demon. Demons here don't have horns or bat-like wings or tails according to popular belief about them; they just look like any human being. But that's only until the physical attributes; lifespan and abilities are completely different stories. Just like any ordinary, non-royalty common folk, I needed some spiritual unburdening so to speak. Inclusive with this spiritual unburdening is self-awareness. This was the best time to reflect on the things I did that day, what got me mad, what scared me, what depressed me and what made me happy and why. Even though, what we would mostly do is talk or sit in silence, it was one of the best parts of my day. It was very relaxing… and it defies wrinkles brought about by aging as my spiritual guru claimed. The last half of the time would be spent on practicing using my magic skills without summoning my alter ego. So far, I was able to control my element by making a small sphere of water. I improved a little; but an improvement is still an improvement, no matter how minuscule it may seem. My guru praised me for a job well done. To a demon tribesman, having magical powers and being able to control elements was like intelligence quotient to a human being. The strength of the magic or the agility to bring about ones element was also like the level of a human's IQ. But that's to my own analogy.
2400: Bidding goodnight to each other (without the kiss), we went to our separate chambers. I opened the doors slowly, making sure that the hinges would not squeak, and crept in. Slipping in to the bed, I looked at the boy sleeping peacefully next to me. My fiancé, Lord Wolfram von Bielefeld. So maybe having a guy for a fiancé wouldn't be exactly just like any ordinary, non-royalty common folk… back on Earth anyway. But in the Great Demon Kingdom, in this universe even, everyone was allowed to choose whomever they wanted, be it woman or man. But inter-racial relationships were shunned at, meaning no human could marry a demon or vice versa or else they would be severely punished. But that soon would change; as the new king of the Great Demon Kingdom I will make sure of that. The proposal was an accident really. There was some venom spitting and I slapped him; but of course, I didn't know what it really meant back then and now we were engaged by accident. I guess, you could also say I was accidentally in-love. I had fallen head over heals with this bratty, whiny, selfish, temperamental, jealous, fiery, sweet, honest, charming demon. It was so contradictory at how something so angelic could be called a demon. And just like any ordinary, non-royalty common folk, I also had the ability to completely and utterly be enamored, not just by his beauty, but also his annoying little habits and petty jealousies – which were cute really. I resisted the urge to hold him tight; I didn't want to disturb him, so instead I kissed him on the forehead and rolled to my side, facing the window. I was in between sleep and awake when I felt an arm coil around my waist with the sleepy murmur of 'wimp'. I smiled as I let myself fall into blissful slumber, expecting another painful kick on the backside by morning, and bringing to a close just another day in the life of a Demon King.
See? Being the Great Demon Kingdom's new reigning monarch wasn't totally different from being an ordinary, non-royalty common folk. There's really not much difference at all, is there?
-FIN-
Gracias.
Review, por favor?