I WAS PROMOTED FROM BOTTOM-TIER TO MINISTER
My name is Beelzebub.
My name makes me sound important, but really, it’s too important a name for me. It once belonged to a great demon of the past, and I was given that name, common as I am, so I may one day reach those same heights.
For the past 1,500 years, I’ve been quietly, plainly, and simply working as a public servant for the demon government.
The post I took was in the Agricultural Policy Organization, the lower branch of the Department of Agriculture.
To put it simply, it was the place that created projects and produced data for the country’s agricultural administration. For 1,500 years, I was a clerk there—basically the lowest of the lowliest bureaucrats. You might believe my record was awful or that my attitude at work was terrible, but that wasn’t true. I had stopped there intentionally.
Personnel prodded me, occasionally suggesting I become a manager at least, but I turned down every offer. I told them I didn’t have those skills.
According to the rules governing public servants, if the person in question refuses a promotion, they are able to stay in their position. I could never be fired, because I was a government official!
I was going to live on lazily as a rank-and-file employee with no responsibilities!
Some people are suited for life in the fast lane, and some aren’t. I was the latter. I didn’t feel like summoning the drive to climb the bureaucratic ladder all the way to the top, nor did I feel like having a passionate affair.
It was far too much trouble, so I didn’t have the confidence to establish a household, either.
And so I concentrated on working as the least important clerk—or, as they say, “the bottom tier.”
I didn’t even have the caliber to stand before people, much less to stand above them. I knew that best of all.
I wore clothes that were a little uglier than average, and my hair was pulled back only because it’d grown out and was bothering me. And although my eyesight was perfectly fine, I wore glasses to make me stand out even less.
I was just someone in the office. I was never a topic of workplace gossip, and if I disappeared, very little would change. Of course, the men I worked with would never even consider me as an object of romantic interest.
I’d managed to preserve my lifestyle of living in the shadows, undetected, for 1,500 years. It was my way of protecting myself.
My only miscalculation was that my coworkers always casually came to ask me for help because I was so plain, but I just endured it as an inevitable hardship.
You see, the frightening and domineering ladies stuck in middle management would never ask for help from the female employees beneath them. And a man always hesitated when it came to asking things from a beautiful, unmarried coworker. Someone else might be suspicious that he was interested in her. In that respect, I had no relation to office politics, and I was outside the fight for success.
Not only that, but with my nonexistent fashion sense, I appeared to have thrown away my femininity entirely.
Both men and women alike saw me as androgynous and approached me without hesitation.
And as a result, I turned into the one people came to when they were in trouble.
On my right, I would have an employee who didn’t know where the file room was, so I’d go with them to show them where it was; on my left, I would have someone frazzled by their boss’s very peculiar style requirements for any documents submitted, so I’d use my 1,500 years of career experience to help them.
I usually just got a piece of candy as thanks. For bigger jobs, I’d often get a drink at the bar.
I mean, that was fine. I was totally okay with that, if the alternative was moving up in the ranks and being saddled with more responsibility.
And for that, I think I was pretty well-liked within the office.
My unrefined lifestyle would get even worse when I returned to my single apartment.
When I got home, I would immediately change into my roomy pajamas!
Then I’d lie on the floor!
And my shoes were dirty, so I took them off. “No shoes” was the rule in my house.
On the table would be empty bottles and cups of alcohol and nuts to snack on. The pile of books in the corner of my room was collapsing, but I hadn’t put them back.
If a lady friend came, she’d retreat immediately, but honestly, I didn’t have the courage to invite anyone here in the first place. I didn’t even want to invite my family over.
But this tepid lifestyle suited me. My personality was perfect for these lazy, unchanging days.
I wasn’t wrong. If I could live my long life with ease like this, I would consider it a victory. Perhaps one could call it my “win condition.”
And wasn’t it nice to just get drunk at home without anyone scolding you?
On the morning of my day off, the light streaming in through my run-down apartment woke me up. But—
“I stayed too long yesterday helping people. Maybe I should sleep a little more…”
That morning I fell back asleep, then finally woke up for real with bed head.
“What shall I do today? First I’ll go to the restaurant with spicy hell pasta for brunch.”
That place offered large portions and allowed us to add extra spice for free during lunchtime.
“Then I’ll pick something out from the bookstore—it looks like it’s going to rain tonight, so I’ll come back early, and I can just have the hell-pot and bread I made yesterday… I suppose I’m fine as long as I’m eating spicy food.”
Savoring the little things was a good way to live, in my opinion.
Sometimes I felt like the little things were too little, but big dreams would only leave me exhausted.
I was born as a daughter to greengrocers and spent some time helping with the store, and after I reached a suitable age for a long-lived demon, I took a test and became a civil servant. I was indifferent to the promotion ladder at that point. To be honest, I lacked any interest in moving up in the world, or in becoming important.
I yawned as I milled about Vanzeld Castle town.
As I walked along a market road, I saw a flyer:
CORONATION OF THE NEW DEMON KING ON THE XTH DAY OF THE XTH MONTH
Ah, indeed. It was finally time for the succession.
Now that the war with the humans had reached a cease-fire and the aftermath was mostly over, the demon king was apparently putting his daughter on the throne.
Her name is Provato Pecora Ariés, I believe.
I’d heard she was young and reform-oriented. Because of that, the people at the top of the organization were apprehensive that she might interfere with the status quo for the civil servants based on her whims.
When a new demon king was crowned, they often put the scalpel to the bureaucracy in order to freshen it up. The agricultural minister at the top of the department would probably change, but, well, that had nothing to do with me. I’d just go about my business quietly. There was no fight for power at the bottom. I didn’t have any power to begin with.
I wolfed down my extra-large and extra-spicy pasta at my usual place.
A demon couple walked hand in hand in front of the bookstore. They were too lovey-dovey; they’d probably break up in six months. They should take more care so as not to deepen the inevitable wounds.
I sighed as I stored my warning away in my heart.
Some people out there just had brilliant lives.
And so coronation day for the new demon king came.
Us civil servants all attended to give praise to our new ruler up on the stage.
She was young. Far younger than I imagined.
The new demon king had a pair of sheeplike horns growing from the sides of her head and wore a black dress for the ceremony. She struck me as a well-raised girl, but she looked so much like a child that I heard voices of concern around me.
I understood their opinion; things could prove difficult if the demon king wasn’t an already battle-hardened individual, even if we weren’t currently at war with the humans.
“I am the new demon king, Provato Pecora Ariés. I hope to work together with everyone to create an even better nation.”
Her plain, generic general policy speech came to an end.
Still, if she could follow a template like that, she could at least keep the status quo. From the perspective of all the civil servants, that would be the most ideal—
And then.
The new demon king suddenly locked eyes with me.
I was standing way, way, way behind the agriculture minister, and yet it felt like she was looking directly at me. No, I had to be imagining things. The new demon king would never look at a low-level grunt like me. Our eyes had just happened to meet when she was scanning the audience.
“And now, I would like to announce each new cabinet minister~ I believe our new personnel will be more youthful than ever.”
What she said was also something all too common.
The words meant she was breaking up the old ways, but it was normal to promote the powerful members of some faction somewhere.
If they had any interest, the minister would be selected from the same faction that supported the previous demon king, or possibly a different faction.
According to the rules, even someone of low standing could climb up to a higher position, but that was nothing but lip service to the idea. Every position at the top was and always had belonged to the privileged class. A noble title was necessary to be a minister, especially.
“First, our foreign minister shall be Nastas. Next, the home minister shall be Velts; the economic minister shall be Vector…”
She read names one after the other. It seemed the designated demons had no idea of this announcement beforehand, so a few of them made victorious poses upon hearing their name.
Everyone seemed strong. If the war with the humans were still in progress, then they’d probably be dispatched to towers here and there as bosses.
The new demon king offered simple explanations for why she selected these first few people as ministers.
I paid no attention to it as I thought about who came from what faction.
She was appointing ministers from all different factions. Maybe that meant the new demon king’s authority was weak.
“Now, I shall return to the personnel. The labor minister shall be Chanoir; the health minister shall be Mix…”
The rank-and-file workers weren’t interested at all. Many people around me started yawning. None of it affected us personally, after all.
“…The agriculture minister shall be Beelzebub…”
At first, I didn’t really understand what she said.
Actually, it might be more apt to say that I ignored it. This couldn’t have to do with me.
Beelzebub was the name of a great demon from the past, so it wouldn’t have been strange to hear of other civil servants with the same name. It was probably someone else, someone important in the agricultural department.
But all my coworkers standing in front of me turned around to look at me with blatant disbelief.
“Wait, can she do that?”
“How many ranks are you going up?”
Everyone was thinking I was going to be the agricultural minister…
“Wait, wait! This has to be a mistake! I’ve always been at the bottom; I can’t be the minister!” I cried with conviction.
Such a personnel shift was unthinkable!
But the new demon king continued with her explanation.
“Beelzebub has worked dependably for one thousand, five hundred years in agricultural policy. She has also helped many of her coworkers and is extraordinarily popular. In the past, we received many comments in the suggestion box requesting she be placed in an important post. And yet, she herself never boasted about it, working for years as an unsung hero. I believe the time has finally come to raise her into a position of authority.”
The new demon king replied with a lengthy and unbelievable explanation. Perhaps she was just trying to catch everyone by surprise with a sensational cabinet selection because she was young, but I wouldn’t be part of this!
Once I took on the position of minister, a colossal amount of work would be waiting for me. I certainly wouldn’t be able to continue the easy life I had now. My humble delights would crumble to dust…
I would not stand for this.
I leaped out of my row.
“I am Beelzebub! Your Majesty, I don’t think this assignment will be possible!”
It was a rude thing to do to the demon king, but desperate times called for desperate measures, and no one was coming to stop me.
The new demon king looked down at me playfully from the stage. I could see on her face that she had predicted this very reaction.
Which meant I hadn’t been imagining it when I thought our eyes met…
“It seems you are not satisfied with the situation,” the new demon king said to me, blatantly ignoring our difference in status.
I wanted to applaud her for her frank tone, but my promotion was what was at stake here.
“Of course I’m not! The minister’s post is for a person who is already important! Someone fourth or fifth in the pecking order may end up becoming a minister, but there’s still no precedent for bottom-tier trash like me to take the position!”
I hadn’t been working for 1,500 years for show. I knew this was unprecedented.
“I see. What you say is correct. Then I will answer your question.” It wasn’t like the new demon king was using any kind of voice-enhancing magic, but it still carried really well. “You’ve been serving for one thousand, five hundred years; is that correct?”
“Yes. I was originally helping out with my parents’ greengrocery, so I only took and passed the civil service exam after I turned one thousand. And for the fifteen hundred years since then, I’ve been working where I am now.”
I wondered why I had to give my life story in front of everyone, but if this was going to create a scandal and make it clear that I shouldn’t be promoted that far up, then that was reasonable to me.
“So you’ve been working for the current public Agricultural Policy Organization for fifteen hundred years, Beelzebub. In that case, it should’ve been impossible for you to remain at an entry-level position this whole time. Yet there’s no record of you having been demoted.”
“I’ve turned down every offer of promotion because it would be beyond my abilities.”
My job was to just complete the tasks that came down to me from the top, no thought required. I’d always be in a position for others to use me, but I wouldn’t have to take on any heavy responsibility.
I could hear the other bureaus: “Someone’s been at the bottom for fifteen hundred years?” and “I guess that’s not a post that comes with a fixed term.”
It was true; the way I worked was not a common trick.
This might’ve been difficult to pull off if I were human, but demons were long-lived, and with my youthful looks, my low position wouldn’t seem strange.
“Indeed, and so I’ve calculated to see what would’ve happened if you had been continually promoted with your grades. Please look at this.”
A plan written on a large poster unfurled next to the new demon king—she must’ve had this ready beforehand.
“Taking into account your service record, service history, and reputation among your bosses and colleagues, you have accumulated results that prove there would be no problem if you became minister. Congratulations!”
“Wh-wh-wha…?”
I wanted to believe it was a dream and softly pinched my left arm.
Ow.
Around me, I could hear comments:
“I see. Making a big jump after raising your reputation by working hard for a very long time on the bottom is one way to do it.”
“Maybe it’s like trying to become the strongest by only killing slimes.”
Wait, wait, wait—why are they okay with this…?
The new demon king placed her right hand against her right cheek and sighed theatrically.
“Sigh~ I also thought of a more orthodox personnel selection, but we discovered corruption as well as embezzlement from both the vice minister and employees in similar posts, so we asked them to resign~ I was truly lost as to who I should make the minister of agriculture~”
The new demon king eyed me again, chuckling softly.
Oh, so she’s a prankster…
This was just a big experiment using me, a low-ranking employee…
Give me a break! I don’t want to be your guinea pig!
“Then I thought that perhaps this was our chance to use someone who’d spent their career at the bottom and yet maintained an excellent reputation.”
After she said that, the other bureaucrats around me offered more comments.
“Ohhh, I get it now.”
“That’s one way of going about it.”
Why are you okay with this?!
Calm down; calm down. I’ll be doing just what the new demon king wants if I get worked up here.
I was still a civil servant, so I should calmly refuse the offer as was afforded in the rules.
“Your Majesty, in this instance, I would respectfully recommend that I remain a low-level employee.”
I bowed my head politely and folded my wings. They had spread in my excitement, and it’d be rude to keep them out.
“Oh, no. It’s normal to appoint people who’ve shown great achievements.”
“However, I’m the daughter of a humble greengrocer in the countryside. What I want to say is, I don’t have any noble status or any similar rank. It has been the long-standing practice that those of noble standing take the position of minister. I am completely undeserving of this post, and I am terribly sorry to say that I can’t accept it.”
Despite how quickly the bureaucratic organization had developed in the past two thousand years, there were still slight traces of the class system among the demons.
Depending on the era, minister-level demons would sometimes command their subordinates to carry out massive wars against the humans, so it required someone with a rank worthy of such responsibility.
“I see now. What a pickle~”
“Yes, so if you would kindly choose someone else to—”
“Then I will give you an empty manor belonging to a former noble family. And I will also give you a title. You may introduce yourself as Lady Beelzebub. Problem solved.”
“……What?”
She decided on that far too easily…
Then the new demon king stepped down from the stage and for some reason started walking toward me.
The civil servants on either side of her naturally parted the way for her. I also courteously kneeled before her.
“Beelzebub, this may seem unreasonable to you, but had you climbed up through the ranks normally, you would truly be a talent on par with the minister after working so hard for fifteen hundred years. The score that the personnel department gave you was unnaturally high. In reality, plenty of other posts requested you, but agricultural policy stopped them all.”
“Th-that’s because a clerk’s work is easy, so it probably just looked like I was working hard…”
“Raise your head, Beelzebub.”
I had to obey when she commanded me. There stood the new demon king, smiling with royal dignity.
She then plopped her hand on my shoulder.
“It was the previous demon king who settled the war with the humans. But there are a heap of problems yet, and the agricultural department is full of them. Right now, we require new forces without prior obligations tying them down. This is a request from me, Demon King Provato Pecora Ariés.”
The new demon king graciously bowed her head to me.
All my options for excuses were gone. I’d shame her if I turned her down now.
Not only would I not be able to keep my easy low-level job, I wouldn’t even be able to live in Vanzeld Castle town.
“I—I humbly accept the appointment…”
And so I, Beelzebub, suddenly went from entry-level clerk to the minister of agriculture.
I had to bid farewell to my run-down apartment and its proximity to the market, which was really the only good thing about it. It was a sudden good-bye.
I was moving to a stout three-story building outside of the Vanzeld Castle moat. It reminded me of the main branch of a bank. The yard in front of the manor was even big enough to play sports on. There was a garden with a large pond in the back, and I’d heard that rocs sometime came to drink the water. Behind it was a whole forest, like a sea of trees.
When I stood before the building, I stared at it in blank amazement.
“If there was a coup tomorrow, I’d probably be one of the first to die…”
I checked every single one of the large, abundant rooms. One room was already bigger than my old apartment. There was even a ballroom.
I’d have to employ some kind of help in the future. Otherwise I’d have to take off every day to clean if I wanted to keep up. Or I could just use the minimum amount of rooms needed for my day-to-day life…
Then I saw something in the enormous mirror in the changing room before the chalky-white bathroom.
I was terrified.
Standing there was a woman with no hope of getting ahead, with no prospects for entering society, with no money—with nothing, because she’d thrown it all away.
It wasn’t a ghost, of course. Demons weren’t scared of ghosts.
The only thing in the mirror was my own face.
Indeed—standing out wouldn’t do anything for a low-level employee, so I’d had no qualms about it. I’d treated my appearance as a good way to keep as many people on my side as possible.
But now I was a noble and a minister.
Someone in those positions couldn’t look this plain. I wouldn’t be mistaken for a minister’s secretary, much less a full-blown minister.
Even if the new demon king acknowledged me, that didn’t mean the other ministers from real houses wouldn’t snicker behind my back. And my staff would undeniably laugh at me, too…
I made up my mind.
It was time to change my character.
I placed as many gold and silver coins into a bag as I could fit and went out onto the main avenue.
I bought everything that caught my eye at a women’s clothing shop and returned to the manor. Then I carefully tried on each item before the mirror.
It would have been nice if I had had friends for a time like this, but I didn’t have any. Seriously, zero.
In reality, after working at a low level position for 1,500 years, I had watched all the people I’d joined with go to higher ranks, and there was no one in the workplace I got along well with. It was all my own doing.
Glasses didn’t fit my character, so I took them off. I didn’t have bad eyesight in the first place, so it was no problem.
I chose my outfit. It was a little revealing, but ministers were like dungeon bosses, so I figured this was fine.
Next up was my style of speech. I couldn’t stay as a bottom-ranking employee—I had to master an appropriate style of speech. Your word choice clearly changed depending on your status, so I had to learn how to speak like a minister.
I underwent a strange, intensive training.
I practiced all through the night until the sun rose, and I established my form.
“Ha-ha-ha! My name is Beelzebub! I am the great lord of the flies! Prepare yourself, for I will make you painfully aware of what agriculture should be!” I recited, making a pose in front of the mirror.
No—I introduced myself, taking my stance before the mirror.
“I am Beelzebub, demon noble and minister of agriculture. Adequate results will not be enough for those of you beneath me. Oh, talking like this might end up putting pressure on my subordinates, so I’ll have to be careful… Oh, shoot, now I’m talking like I used to…”
I’d been practicing my transformation this entire time.
Ten out of ten people might think I was joking around, but—
I wasn’t joking around at all! I was super-serious!
Without these drastic changes, I didn’t have confidence that I could carry out my work from now on…
And I wasn’t the great Beelzebub, lord of the flies, of course. I could use magic that could turn me into a fly, and I did sometimes eat the bruised fruit at my parents’ greengrocery back when I was working there. Actually, they were tastiest just before or just as they were beginning to rot.
Oh, no, no… I mean… Oh dear. Sheesh. I have to keep my inner voice consistent with my character.
I stared at myself in the mirror.
My clothes left my shoulders bare, and my hair was straightened to give me a more powerful image.
All I needed to do was show confidence on my face and hold myself high.
“I am Beelzebub, minister of agriculture. I am Beelzebub, minister of agriculture. I am Beelzebub, minister of agriculture, and so I shall act as of today. My inconspicuous self is a thing of the past.”
And so I went to work at the Agricultural Policy Organization for the first time as the new Beelzebub.
’Twas my debut as the minister of agriculture!
“Good morning. How fare my underlings?!”
My coworkers stared at me blankly.
Surely they were surprised by my noble carriage! Perhaps they thought I was a pure-blooded noble!
A lowly woman who was once my coworker slowly raised her hand and said—
“Beelzebub, you’re the minister of agriculture; I don’t think this is where you’re supposed to work…”
“……Indeed. Old habits die hard.”
I left the room, my face bright red…
“I should not have left my comfort zone…”
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