Helck Vol. 01

Helck Vol. 01. An epic tale of the powerful human hero who aims to become the next Demon Lord!

After the demon lord is slain at the hands of a lone human warrior, humans rejoice over the end of his reign of terror. But an intense tournament of powerful fighters hoping to be crowned the next demon lord has drawn in the unlikeliest of contestants—Helck, who claims to hate humans but is one himself! How will Helck change the course of the war between demons and humankind?

Three months have passed since the demon lord was struck down, and the Demon Realm is holding a tournament to select his replacement. The leading contestant is Helck, a human hero who claims to hate his own kind. Some aren’t happy with the idea of a human becoming the next demon lord—especially Vermilio the Red. She wants nothing more than to protect demonkind and prove Helck to be their enemy, even if she has to rig the competition to do it!

Biographical Notes:

Nanaki Nanao is best known for the manga Helck, originally published in 2014 and rereleased in 2022. Nanao’s other works include Piwi and Völundo: Divergent Sword Saga, both set in the world of Helck, as well as Acaria.

Title Notes:

It’s a sword-and-sorcery fantasy manga.

The story is a slow burn, most manga begin with a bang, while Helck starts with some narration and then the jokes, as it is originally more of a gag manga before the plot starts to come online and balance things out.

More details on Nanaki Nanao:

Nanaki Nanao’s Twitter account

Publisher’s Twitter account