Chapter 80 - Of Course You Do

“He said to contact him whenever I wanted help?”

“Yes.”

Jason’s unexpected message only heightened Berge’s wariness.

“Then it’s safe to assume he knows what’s happening right outside here?”

“Yes. I believe so.”

“How did he find out?”

“Perhaps he has connections among the humans?”

True, those connections need not even be high-ranking. Lavinia Akan had climbed into Erjest alone, and Akan’s troops had followed her, exposing who they were.

“I’m sure you have your own thoughts on the matter, my lord, but you mustn’t simply take his goodwill at face value.”

Gordon’s advice was only natural. The idea that Demon Kings, who were rivals, would help one another out of pure goodwill was absurd.

‘But with Jason, there’s a chance he genuinely intends to help.’

It was just that his motives weren’t pure.

“For now, send a brief reply saying I understand.”

“Yes.”

“Any word from Granada?”

“Not yet. Akan’s group includes a few heroes, so I believe he’s being cautious.”

KNOCK, KNOCK

Just then, Ernyan opened the door and peeked inside.

“My lord, Krutu is here.”

“I’ll be down.”

Berge rose from his seat.

“Please be careful.”

“I will.”

He answered offhandedly and went down to the first floor. Logger, equipped with all manner of tools, and Krutu, carrying supplies, were waiting there, along with dozens of Poil Orcs.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

They raced off on the frost wolves the orcs had brought. Seated in front of Krutu, Logger asked,

“Should we do the same thing as last time?”

“Yes.”

By last time, he meant when they had received Hillen Cargill. They had placed cannons along the expedition’s anticipated route and triggered an avalanche. It had drastically sapped the expedition’s fighting spirit, allowing them to repel the bastards relatively easily.

“How much progress have you made on the golem core?”

“Mana and demonic energy are completely different. Their properties and very foundations differ, so every aspect of the magical structure and circuitry required to form a core changes.”

“Judging by how much you’re running your mouth already, not much.”

“... O-one percent or so?”

“Have you done any research at all?”

Berge’s expression soured. He understood that Logger was spending more time building mana cannons and outfitting the first floor, of course, but wasn’t this practically the same as doing nothing?

“Didn’t you say you were well versed in alchemy and enchantment magic?”

“Magic that uses mana is completely different from magic that uses demonic energy. I’m teaching myself an entirely new field of study, all on my own.”

“And?”

“... Well, it’s not that I’m making excuses. I just hoped you might acknowledge my hard work a little...”

“Get it to ten percent within two weeks, and I’ll give you some of the tower’s components.”

“I, Logger, swear on my life and my reputation as Berft’s finest craftsman that I will accomplish it! Leave it to me!”

As expected, this dwarf bastard was easy to handle.

“Krutu. Are your tribespeople doing well?”

“Yes. Some of the warriors who fought alongside me were frightened by the appearance of that monster called a chimera, but your majesty helped them overcome it, my lord.”

“That’s a relief.”

In truth, fear wasn’t much of a problem for orcs, who lived to fight.

‘Come to think of it, I haven’t paid them much attention.’

He had essentially turned them loose in the fields and left them to grow on their own. Though he had provided elixirs and given them the heart of a frozen drake he’d killed.

“Are all your tribespeople satisfied?”

“Yes. Thanks to you, my lord, our tribe is growing and our territory expands by the day. Our loyalty to you is higher than the heavens.”

“Any monsters you find difficult to handle?”

“None. Surely no insolent bastard could stand tall before the power you’ve bestowed upon us.”

“Hmm.”

Why did it feel as though he were looking at a die-hard demon who worshipped the Demon Emperor?

It wasn’t a bad thing, but it was a little embarrassing. Before his regression, perhaps he wouldn’t have minded, but now he knew how insignificant he was in Arain.

“Taking control of Erjest is all well and good. But don’t go northeast.”

“Yes. I will obey your command.”

Once again, Krutu asked no questions.

“There’s something like soup gone stone-cold over that way. Nothing good will come of dealing with it, so stay away.”

“Yes.”

Berge added the explanation, and Krutu bowed his head.

After riding for quite some time, they reached their destination: one of the many approaches up the mountain. With just the right nudge, the snow piled farther up would come cascading down and engulf Akan’s group.

“Set up the mana cannons here.”

The Poil Orcs set down the cannons they had carried on their backs.

“My lord, I’ve been thinking.”

“What is it?”

“Instead of something crude like an avalanche, why don’t we concentrate the mana cannons here and sweep them away with sheer firepower?”

“They mustn’t discover that I use mana cannons. Do you intend to loudly announce your presence to the humans?”

“Isn’t keeping it secret all that matters?”

“You don’t think they’ll fail to recognize mana cannons, do you?”

“Of course not, but ultimately, my secret is safe as long as no one finds out, isn’t it? And...”

“Dead men tell no tales?”

“Exactly! If we fire dozens of mana cannons all at once, would they even have time to scream? And if any survive, the orcs can sweep up the rest.”

“...”

It was hard to tell which of them was the Demon King here.

It was a good plan, certainly, but unfortunately, he couldn’t use it.

“Rejected.”

“What?”

“Akan’s prince and princess are both with them. Killing them isn’t the right move just yet.”

Even in Erjest, those two weren’t people who would die easily, so suspicion would naturally fall on Berge.

“Ah, I see...”

Logger sighed in disappointment.

“But I promise you this. Someday, the mana cannons you built for the tower will wipe out an entire expedition.”

“... I’ll be counting the days!”

Logger’s expression changed.

‘... Ernyan, Akan’s princess, and now this bastard.’

Why did it seem none of them were normal?

‘Why am I, a Demon King, worrying about this?’

Faced with that peculiar question, he stopped thinking about it.

* * *

“Hmm.”

Granada swallowed a groan. The situation could hardly have been more uncomfortable.

“Is the food not to your liking?”

“Not at all. It’s delicious.”

It did taste good. He simply couldn’t tell whether it was going into his mouth or his nose, thanks to the two pairs of red eyes watching him constantly.

‘A princess on one side, a prince on the other. And over there, the captain of the Blue Meteor Mage Corps and the commander of the White Wolf Knights.’

When had he ever received the attention of so many royals and nobles? He had attracted plenty at Hilderan’s banquet, but this was an entirely different situation.

“Eat lots.”

A large piece of meat speared on a fork was deposited on Granada’s plate. The small white hand belonged to Lavinia.

“Yes, thank you.”

“My sister seems to have taken quite a liking to you, Granada.”

“... Ahem.”

“... Hmm.”

Watching from beside them, the prince laughed cheerfully, while the knight and mage stifled uncomfortable groans.

SMACK, SMACK, SMACK

Behind them, an enormous titan ravenously chewed and swallowed meat.

Granada felt as though he were sitting on pins and needles. He was sure they had arranged this meeting because they wanted to ask him about Erjest.

“Eat lots.”

“That’s too much.”

“Even more.”

Another piece of meat was added. A mountain of it already covered Granada’s plate.

Under that intense gaze, he had no choice but to put a piece in his mouth. After chewing and swallowing it, he wiped the sauce from around his mouth with a napkin.

“I heard you had some questions about Erjest.”

“Ah, yes. That was the purpose of this meeting.”

Cain set down his knife.

“Before coming here, I did some research into the hero Hillen’s hero’s journey. What surprised me most was that monsters attacked the expedition every night.”

It wasn’t merely a matter of sending demonic creatures. Monsters had harassed the expedition night after night. That suggested one dreadful possibility: the Demon King could command the monsters of Erjest.

“What was it like? Did it truly seem that the Demon King commanded the mountains’ monsters? Was the entire mountain his territory?”

“Didn’t you say you’d already heard about it?”

“But those heroes weren’t people who held out to the very end, as you did.”

Hmm.

Granada considered his answer. How could he satisfy Cain without harming the Demon King? A lie that was too obvious might only invite suspicion.

“I can’t give you a definite answer on that either.”

“Naturally, unless you were acquainted with the Demon King, you couldn’t. That’s not what I’m asking for. I simply hope you’ll tell us exactly what you experienced and felt, without embellishing or leaving anything out.”

“We wandered the mountains for over a month in search of the tower.”

“Yes.”

“And every single night, without exception, monsters attacked us.”

“How many were there?”

“A great many. Easily hundreds.”

“You mean more than several hundred monsters came swarming in every day?”

“Yes.”

Most of those hundreds had been Poil Orcs driving the other monsters toward them, and only a handful had directly attacked the expedition, but that wasn’t important. Whatever the circumstances, it was true that hundreds of monsters had come swarming in.

‘But won’t this make them give up altogether?’

Would that please the Demon King?

“... Good heavens. Are you saying all the monsters in the mountains have become the Demon King’s servants?”

Cain stifled a groan. The captain of the Blue Meteor Mage Corps denied it.

“That’s impossible. Perhaps if his tower had stood for several centuries, but a Demon King who descended only a year ago could never manage such a thing.”

“But we have a witness, don’t we?”

“If that were possible, the continent would have fallen into the Demon Kings’ hands long ago.”

“Ah... True enough.”

Cain nodded.

“Then what could explain it?”

Instead of answering, the mage questioned Granada.

“Granada, what monsters made up the bulk of those groups?”

“Poil Orcs.”

“And you’re certain they attacked the expedition only at night?”

“Yes.”

“Just as I thought!”

“Do you have an idea?”

“As you know, Your Highness, orcs live in groups. Their obedience to their superiors is absolute, and they carry out their chieftain’s commands even at the cost of their lives.”

“I see what you mean. If he can control a single chieftain, he can gain command of countless orcs?”

“Exactly. And the fact that they attack only at night is another major clue.”

“How so?”

“Though demons originated mind magic, not every demon is proficient in it. Moreover, the Demon King of Hellfire’s power itself is known to be fire.”

“Yes.”

“Thus, he must be somewhat lacking in mind magic. That’s why he can control the orcs only at night, when demons’ power is relatively stronger.”

“Ah...! In that case...”

The conclusion was that daytime would be relatively easy. They would still face the restriction of difficult nights, but it was far better than the utterly hopeless possibility they had considered earlier.

“It won’t be easy, but we need only be cautious at night. With sufficient preparation, exploring the mountain is quite feasible. After all, the hero’s journey lasted a full month.”

“All the more so since most of those monsters are Poil Orcs.”

That wasn’t to say Poil Orcs were weak. Orcs moving in perfect unison under their chieftain’s orders were, in some respects, no different from a nightmare. But everything was relative. They were better than hundreds of yetis, frozen drakes, twin-headed trolls, or werewolves.

“Perhaps the Poil Orcs were merely driving the other monsters toward them. If hundreds of Poil Orcs had been expended every day for a month, there would have to be tens of thousands of them. That’s impossible.”

“That’s true as well.”

The two quickly drew close to the correct answer.

“Then we’ll need to devise a strategy accordingly.”

“I think we should contact the homeland and have magical equipment brought in.”

“Yes, let’s do that. Ah, Granada. Do you happen to remember your climb through the mountains? I’d like you to serve as our guide.”

“Well...”

According to Berge’s plan, he was supposed to say they had wandered around so much that he didn’t remember clearly.

“Of course you do. Elves are closer to nature than any other race. I’ve never heard of one failing to remember a path they’ve traveled.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“A high elf I know told me that if an elf loses track of a path they’ve taken, it must be deliberate, or they must have suffered a head injury.”

“... I remember all of it.”

He simply couldn’t bring himself to say otherwise. The mage’s words were, in fact, true.

“Then, though I don’t know exactly how much, we should be able to rule out quite a large area.”

“Yes, and to suit that terrain...”

The prince and mage launched into a heated discussion.

“...”

‘I haven’t said something wrong, have I?’

Granada fell silent. For some reason, he felt too ashamed to face Berge.