The Demon Overlord calls forth his Four Heavenly Kings to bring order and prosperity back to his lands:
"Sylphid, Conjurer of the Ultimate Storm!"
"Gnome, Manipulator of Nature's Bulwark, the Earth!"
and "Uchimura Denosuke, Regional Manager of the Overseas!"
Yes, much to the bafflement of everyone, himself most of all, our protagonist is a bog-standard thirty-something human male from Japan, whose sole claim to fame is being an underappreciated middle manager at a MegaCorp. Despite his misgivings, he's impressed with the pay and benefits offered by the Demon Overlord and signs on, bringing his skills as an administrator and negotiator to bear on the logistical and financial problems of the Demon Army. He's joined in this by Ulmandra, a Fiery Redhead demon warrior whom the Demon Overlord appoints as his bodyguard—and who quickly develops a crush on him despite her initial hostility.
Headhunted to Another World began serialization in Comic Gardo on 27 December 2019. Seven Seas Entertainment has been publishing it in English since 5 October 2021.
See also How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom, a Light Novel series with a similar premise.
This manga contains examples of the following tropes:
- Accidental Proposal: At the end of chapter 8, the Demon Overlord gives Uchimura a runestone as a reward for his efforts thus far. To thank Ulmandra for helping him (and smooth things over after they had a spat over an unintended insult by him), he gives it to Ulmandra—not realizing that this is considered a marriage proposal among the demons. (Didja have to do it on bended knee?) He does it again when he buys a set of wedding goblets from a merchant as props for a gambit to establish trade ties with King Rampaige, and gives one to Ulmandra just because he thought she'd like it.
- Awesomeness by Analysis: Uchimura's best skill is figuring out people's aims and desires by keen attention to detail. In the first chapter he quickly concludes a treaty with the minotaurs when he figures out that the word "Peniser!" that their ambassador Tarius kept repeating was a flawed result of their Translator Microbes: the minotaur was trying to say that he thought the bed they gave him to sleep in was too flimsy.
- Big Good: The demons in this series are haughty but not inherently evil, and the Demon Overlord is one of the best. He despises that Asskicking Leads to Leadership in this world (necessitated by the presence of calamities, magical kaiju likened to natural disasters) and aspires to end that way of life so that ordinary people like Uchimura can thrive.
- Carnivore Confusion: Uchimura is initially baffled that the orcs, who resemble pig men, are willing to consume wild boar. He decides to just go with it without trying to understand it further.
- Femme Fatalons: One of Ulmandra's fighting techniques is a spell that transforms her right hand into scythe-like claws, which she uses to kill a giant wild boar. Though she dislikes using that spell due to how long it takes to wear off.
- Non-Action Guy: Unlike most isekai protagonists, Uchimura got no New Life in Another World Bonus at all: he has no fighting skills and is only able to cast magic with the use of a runestone. Fortunately he has Ulmandra to do his fighting for him.
- Non-Action Protagonist: Uchimura Denosuke is a Japanese salaryman who is transported into a Standard Japanese Fantasy Setting without any Isekai cheats, so he remains a completely ordinary thirty-something human who is expected by the Demon Overlord to solve administrative, diplomatic, and logistics problems for the demons using Awesomeness by Analysis. The MegaCorp he worked for on Earth didn't properly appreciate his talents in this regard, but the Demon Overlord very much does.
- Oblivious to Love: Uchimura does think Ulmandra is hot, but is clueless about her crush on him or the fact that he keeps accidentally proposing to her—although her inability to actually tell him her feelings doesn't help.
- Only in It for the Money: Downplayed. Uchimura does care about more than money, but the fact that the Demon Overlord offered him the equivalent salary of a member of the board of directors at his old company certainly didn't hurt.
- Stripperiffic: Justified with the demons. A body that's in good shape is crucial to being able to use magic, so demons like Ulmandra traditionally like to show skin to advertise their magical power. Uchimura unintentionally offends Ulmandra when he suggests she use a weapon instead of magic to fight, which denigrates both her magic power and her looks.
