Chapter 76 - The Demon King Appeared
11 min read ·
“Don't talk nonsense.”
Surprisingly, Louise refused.
“Dress it up however you like, but you want to take action, so you're asking me to set the stage for you, aren't you? Greedy, aren't you? Swallowing up two Demon Kings wasn't enough?”
“I offered sincere advice for your sake, Princess. I can only regret that you took it that way.”
“The greatest loyalty you can show me is telling me where Logger is.”
She gulped down her dark beer. Faced with her unexpected firmness, Hillen readily divulged it.
“He was in Bollian.”
“The Traparta Union? Can you swear to that?”
“I swear.”
It wasn't a lie. He had heard that the Demon King and Logger had stopped there together while procuring materials for the mana cannons.
“First Tarta, now Bollian? He certainly gets around.”
“Tarta?”
“None of your business.”
“Are you truly content to forgo your revenge?”
“You seem more eager than I am.”
“Not at all.”
Louise dismissed him.
“Then I shall take my leave for today.”
Hillen left. Louise, who had been putting on an imposing air, flung her cup aside in irritation.
“... That was close.”
She had nearly been tempted.
Why wouldn't she want revenge on the Demon King of Carnal Desire?
She was holding herself back.
A hero's journey was no simple matter. The interests of countless nations and people were tangled together...
No, those were all excuses.
She was merely wary of Father's reaction. Having already caused a major incident in Ormus, she was trying to restrain herself.
'And besides...'
From the moment the Demon King tried to abduct her, Father would have been determined to exact a price somehow.
Since the attempt had failed, he wouldn't go as far as the last resort of a hero's journey, but he would vent his pent-up anger in some fashion.
'For now, I'll be satisfied with that...'
It wouldn't hurt to revisit Hillen Cargill's proposal later, when the time was right.
“Ah.”
About to wet her throat with beer, Louise saw the cup lying on the floor and laughed hollowly.
She had already donated all her beer to the floor.
* * *
Hortonwork was the front line holding back the monsters of the Erjest Mountains.
It was a dangerous place frequented by monsters, as well as the usual gateway into the range. As such, troops were permanently stationed there, and plenty of mercenaries came seeking work.
A few days earlier, an unusual party had arrived in Hortonwork among those mercenaries.
“The lord gave them his castle?”
“Who on earth are they? Has His Highness the prince come?”
A force of a full two hundred, composed of knights and mages, they were plainly no ordinary visitors.
They bore no banners or insignia, yet the lord had come out to greet them personally. The tale that he had turned over his entire castle and was treating them with the utmost hospitality was no mere rumor.
Naturally, the curiosity of Hortonwork's people reached fever pitch.
“There's no reason for His Highness to come here, is there?”
“Don't they hold a trial once in a great while?”
“But His Majesty is still in good health, isn't he?”
As one of the most dangerous places in the Kingdom of Korzen, Hortonwork occasionally received princes or princesses who came to have their courage as potential heirs tested.
“But if it were His Highness, why would he hide his identity?”
“True.”
Since it was a rite to prove themselves, royalty always arrived with great fanfare. These people occupying the lord's castle were different.
As speculation grew, the lord's soldiers turned the entire city upside down amid urgent shouts.
“Search every inch!”
“What do you think you're doing?”
“The lord's orders. We're searching for someone. Cooperate.”
“Have you seen this woman or not?”
“No.”
“You'll be flogged if you lie.”
“Why would I lie? I've nothing to do with her.”
Streets, shops, houses—everywhere was searched, occupied or not.
Then they found traces of her.
“I-I have seen her. In the northern square...”
“I saw her loitering near the northern wall.”
“She asked whether she could go outside. I told her she couldn't go alone.”
“I told her to bring a permit from the lord, and I haven't seen her since.”
Immediately afterward:
CREAK!
The northern gate opened.
The two hundred guests who had come to Hortonwork marched straight out.
* * *
“My sister really did go up into Erjest.”
Akan's Fifth Prince clutched his aching head.
“Was waiting a little while really so difficult? This isn't a place you venture into rashly.”
He frowned as his legs sank deep into the snow.
“I wish we could ride.”
No horse, however fine, could run through snowy mountains like these.
“Would you like to rest a little?”
“No. Have you found my sister's trail?”
“Yes. Fortunately, there hasn't been a blizzard, so the search shouldn't be too difficult.”
It also helped that the princess was traveling with chimeras and had no particular intention of concealing her movements.
“Good grief, my sister really is unstoppable. Which direction?”
“She's heading farther up.”
Monster corpses lay sprawled at intervals along the way. Other monsters, drawn by the smell of blood, attacked them.
The Fifth Prince muttered uneasily.
“Is this going to be all right? These monsters are no joke...”
“Her Highness's chimeras are stronger than most monsters. She won't fall easily.”
“There's a Demon King in these mountains too, isn't there?”
“Yes. That's why the princess wanted to come to Erjest.”
“And why His Majesty granted permission.”
Until now, no Demon King had hidden their tower.
A Demon King's tower was supposed to be easy to find, making it easier for humans to contend with Demon Kings.
But the Demon King of Erjest was different.
What they had taken for granted was no longer a given. Despite his crimes, humans had been unable to punish him.
Even after the heir to a nation was abducted, they had failed to kill the Demon King and recover the princess.
In the narrow sense, it was Hilderan's problem alone. In the broader sense, it concerned every kingdom.
Couldn't something that had happened once happen again?
The abductions of the Jespine Empire's Ninth Princess and Hilderan's Thirteenth Princess lent certainty to that possibility.
[“Your role is crucial. You must, absolutely must, find the tower. Even if we cannot kill him immediately, we can only seize the initiative once we locate it.”]
[“Otherwise, those Demon King bastards will lead us around by the nose forever.”]
He recalled His Majesty's orders.
No one wanted such a situation.
Fortunately, Akan had a means to prevent it.
Lavinia Akan.
An accomplished chimera creator who, despite being human, was more knowledgeable about and sensitive to demonic energy than anyone.
The king of Akan believed she could locate the tower. It was already well established that, though she was no hero, her sensitivity to demonic energy surpassed a hero's.
As it happened, Lavinia was curious about the new Demon King, and the Kingdom of Korzen had agreed to cooperate in exchange for shared intelligence.
All they needed to do now was establish their headquarters in Hortonwork and investigate Erjest step by step.
But Lavinia Akan hadn't been able to wait even that long before running off.
“She won't run into the Demon King, will she?”
“Demon Kings do not leave their towers except to abduct royalty.”
“My sister is a princess.”
“... But how would the Demon King know that?”
“The problem is that my sister doesn't exactly hide her identity.”
“Are you suggesting the Demon King would have a conversation with her?”
“You never know.”
“... We'll pick up the pace.”
“That would be wise.”
The commander urged his knights onward. The mage battalion cast enhancement spells, allowing them to clear a path more easily.
But Erjest wasn't considered forbidden territory for nothing. There was a reason why hundreds of heroes, Hillen Cargill among them, had been unable to remain in the mountains until they found the tower.
Worse still, they were following Lavinia Akan's trail—a straight path of blood carved by killing every monster in her way.
Monsters caught the scent and swarmed like packs of dogs. Nearly two hundred humans gathered together made an irresistible feast.
The fighting never stopped.
“Your Highness, I believe we should retreat for now.”
“... We have to find my sister!”
The Fifth Prince shook the troll blood from his sword. Running a hand over his dented armor, he blocked the blade of an orc attacking his flank.
“Our losses will be too great if we continue. We came out far too unprepared. Erjest is not a place to take lightly!”
The commander unleashed an enormous surge of aura and cut down the monsters. The mage corps' spells rained upon them.
The smell of blood thickened.
Massive explosions shook the mountain.
Smell, hearing, and sight.
The battle stimulated the monsters' senses, drawing them into an even greater battle. The vicious cycle repeated itself.
The Fifth Prince bit his lip.
“... My sister...”
“The princess will be all right. You know that, don't you?”
Lavinia's chimeras contained a peculiar energy that monsters shunned. Thanks to it, she had survived countless dangerous exploits, but it wasn't a cure-all.
There was no perfection in magic.
“For now, you must have faith.”
“... Yes.”
“Retreat!”
“Retreat! Paralyze the monsters with lightning magic and break through to the rear!”
At that moment:
BOOM!
Something pitch-black dropped from the sky. It crushed the torso of a roaring Poil Orc and let out a roar of its own.
The monsters faltered before the intense, ominous presence it exuded.
“Sister!”
The Fifth Prince spotted the princess perched on the chimera's shoulder.
“Cain. Why?”
“Because you sneaked out, of course!”
“Back soon.”
“Back soon? Is Erjest some ordinary mountain? Why would you climb it alone?”
“Quickly. Monsters.”
Lavinia's gaze swept over the surrounding monsters. They were hesitating before the ominous energy pouring from the chimera, but that would only last a moment.
The scent of blood and the fighting had numbed their reason. It was only a matter of time before their unleashed instincts overcame their aversion.
“Charge!”
“Break straight through and run all the way to Hortonwork!”
The knights' aura merged into one. The mages layered spells over it.
CRASH!
A gigantic battering ram of aura demolished one side of the monster horde.
The shrieks and screams roused the other monsters. The battle resumed.
Cain climbed onto the chimera's other shoulder.
“Are the other chimeras in your storage dimension? We'd be a little safer if you brought them all—”
“Dead.”
“... Pardon?”
Cain was one of the people who knew Lavinia best, and one of the few who could treat her without discomfort.
There should have been dozens of chimeras sleeping in her storage dimension. They were all dead?
“... I suppose that's Erjest for you?”
“Orc. Strong.”
“You mean mere orcs killed them all?”
'Orcs in Erjest would be Poil Orcs...'
Poil Orcs were stronger than ordinary orcs, but were they strong enough to kill all those chimeras?
“Did hundreds of them attack you?”
“One.”
“Just one?”
Impossible.
“Strong orc. Horns on head.”
“... Horns? Then it wasn't an orc, was it?”
“Orc.”
“No, if it had horns...”
“Orc.”
“... Yes. An orc.”
Under her resolute gaze, Cain nodded reluctantly.
“Sister, behind you.”
Cain thrust out his sword, severing the wing of a frost harpy aiming for her back. The harpy screamed and plummeted. The chimera's enormous foot finished it off by trampling it.
“Be careful.”
“Mm.”
“So what happened to that orc? Did you escape?”
“Got away.”
“It got away?”
“Just before.”
“Just before?”
“Demon King.”
“Ah, the Demon King appeared?”
“Yes.”
“I see. The Demon King appeared and took the orc...”
Cain's mouth fell open. The knights and mages clustered around the chimera all turned to stare.
“Wh-what did you say appeared?”
“Demon King.”
“The Demon King took the orc away?”
“Yes.”
“Good heavens...!”
They had found him!
* * *
While Akan's humans were reuniting with their runaway princess, Berge watched from afar.
“Looks like two hundred.”
All their insignia and the like had been removed, but he sensed a familiar energy.
'Was it when they went to kill Drakson?'
Quite a few of Akan's mage corps and knight orders had taken part. Their losses had been as great as their contributions, but perhaps because Akan was a major power, they seemed to have recovered fairly well.
'Sending that lot means...'
They intended to make a serious attempt.
'At what?'
They didn't know where his tower was. They hadn't even properly explored Erjest itself, let alone found the tower.
They knew that too. So why send such a formidable force?
'With that troublesome bitch leading the way, no less.'
One thought chased another, until the chain swallowed even its own body and arrived at a single conclusion.
'They're looking for the tower?'
Lavinia Akan was a chimera mage. She used monsters and demonic creatures to create magical life-forms.
She would naturally have become familiar with demonic energy. In Arain, where dark mages had been wiped out, it was safe to say no one knew more about it than she did.
That was quite different from heroes, who merely felt an aversion to demonic energy.
'So they're using that bitch to find my tower?'
It was only a hypothesis.
But his intuition screamed that it was correct.
Every possible scenario pointed to it as the only answer.
'Ha.'
Berge gave a hollow laugh.
'Yes, they've held back long enough.'
After one failed hero's journey, he had abducted princesses twice more. It would have been strange for them not to react at all.
'Then there's only one answer I can give.'
Just as he had done to Hillen Cargill's expedition. Just as he had done to Dafner Philiain.
'I'll have to send them home empty-handed.'
Berge vanished.