Chapter 33 : It Had Been Useless, Indeed
Chapter 33: It Had Been Useless, Indeed
Ten packets of top-grade Seniel Powder. And two packets of tainted Seniel Powder.
Berje returned to the tower with a total of twelve packets in hand. Roger, the earthbound spirit on the first floor, was the first to greet him.
“Welcome back.”
“Nothing unusual happened, right?”
“No.”
“The mana cannon?”
“I reinforced and strengthened its firepower. I also made a few more.”
Twenty mana cannons were grandly aimed toward the entrance.
Not bad.
But the rest of the place felt terribly empty. He had set up a makeshift workshop in a corner of the first floor, but that was all.
By any measure, it was far too lacking to be called the Demon King’s Tower.
“I want the first floor remodelled a little more.”
“We lack equipment. I did set up a small workshop, but everything is inadequate…”
“Sounds like you’re telling me to go buy some.”
“…Of course not, haha.”
‘Let’s see.’
[319092pt]
Points had accumulated considerably in the short time he’d been away.
Thanks to Hillan Cargill’s failure and the kidnapping of the imperial princess.
Most of these would go to the debt collectors, but he could spend a little, surely.
[Forge of Hell - 50000pt
A replica of the standard workshop used by blacksmiths of the Demon Realm. It contains everything one would expect in a workshop. It merges with the tower and finds an appropriate form.]
[Interference Release (Lowest Grade) - 10000pt
Uses demonic energy to suppress dimensional interference power by a minuscule amount.]
In his previous life, he had never summoned something like a forge. With the Demonic Points he had, he had always been too busy releasing dimensional interference or summoning monsters.
[Balrog - 5000000pt]
[Hydra - 10000000pt]
‘Back then, I had plenty of balrogs to spare.’
But now he couldn’t even dream of it. What he missed most compared to those days were the overflowing monsters.
He bought five of the lowest-grade Interference Releases.
[Some dimensional interference has dissipated.]
There was no significant change. Breathing simply became slightly easier.
It was a mildly irritating matter, but when it came to interference power, demonic energy was extremely inefficient, so he let it slide.
[Installing the Forge of Hell.]
[Location – First Floor.]
Ku-gu-gu-gu—
The tower began to tremble. Roger staggered in alarm. The ground writhed as the forge was summoned.
A blazing molten furnace, hellfire, facilities made from Demon Realm glaciers, famed for their extreme cold, and all sorts of tools filled the space.
[If someone without the Demon King’s permission enters, the Forge of Hell will automatically hide its traces.]
Roger blinked at the Forge of Hell that had suddenly appeared, crushing the makeshift workshop he had set up.
“…Uh, this is…”
“This should do.”
“So I can… use this…?”
“I’m telling you to remodel the entire first floor however you want—don’t just set up mana cannons. Think about how to annihilate the heroes more efficiently.”
“Of course!”
Haaak—
“This is the workshop of the Demon Realm…!”
Roger let out a ragged breath. He rushed past Berje toward the furnace.
“This furnace has an extremely unusual shape.”
“In the Demon Realm, there is something called bloodfire stone. When infused with demonic energy, it heats far hotter than most lava. The furnace is made entirely from bloodfire stone. No need to build a fire—just inject demonic energy to melt metal.”
“Heat from a mineral instead of a flame? Fascinating. Oh—this thing feels alive.”
“The core inside it is a creature called a Frilose that parasitically lives in glaciers. It feeds on heat and expels cold, giving it semi-permanent durability. It’s used often for quenching.”
“The best! This is truly the best!”
It wasn’t just that the forge was something new. Roger, who had spent most of his dwarf life inside workshops, immediately recognised that every piece of equipment was top-grade. The placement of the furnace, smelting area, and other tools had been arranged with the movements of a master craftsman in mind.
“I will do my utmost to remodel the first floor!”
Heh-heh-heh. Roger drooled.
‘…It’ll be fine, right?’
Well, he had already managed to give the hero squad hell with a fairly high-grade mana cannon, so he would probably be fine left to his own devices.
Berje had begun to grasp Roger’s personality. A madman completely consumed by his craft. As long as his cravings were satisfied, he was simple and entirely content.
Berje went up to the next floor. Still empty.
‘How should I fill this place?’
In the past, he had simply plastered the place with monsters. He had laid traps here and there and arranged it like a labyrinth… probably?
‘That’s not a bad idea either.’
The heroes, startled by the mana cannons on the first floor, would climb to the second with their guards up.
But what if what awaited them wasn’t another set of anomalies like the first floor, but a proper, standard layout?
That confusion would be quite effective. They would exhaust themselves second-guessing every step.
He climbed to the third floor. The second floor was lacking already—thinking about the third floor was still far too early.
Finally, the fourth floor. The first thing Berje heard was the sound of air being sliced. The first thing he saw was a blade flying toward him.
Golden aura surged.
It was a fairly decent move. Had the opponent not been the Demon King, and had this not been the Demon King’s Tower, it might have been sharper—enough to wound him.
Clang—
The aura shattered. Kaede, whose blade had been caught, swallowed a groan.
“What are you trying to do?”
“…You filthy Demon King!”
Berje threw Kaede aside. She landed cleanly using a footwork technique, then charged at him again.
Annoyed, Berje struck the back of her neck and knocked her out.
“I told her not to do that.”
Ernan, who had been quietly watching, murmured calmly.
“You didn’t tell her enough.”
“I couldn’t stop her. She kept pestering me, asking how I could possibly side with the Demon King instead of trying to escape together.”
“...”
Honestly, Berje wanted to ask her that himself.
“Get along.”
“I’m trying.”
He tossed her the pouch containing the Seniel Powder.
“Top-grade? Ten of them. And what’s this?”
“Tainted Seniel Powder. I got it for free.”
“Thank you. Honestly, I thought you’d come back with just one.”
“I didn’t want to make multiple trips. So, with that, you can form a contract with a mid-grade spirit?”
“We’ll have to try.”
Berje decided to resolve the question he had been holding onto.
“Summoning a mid-grade spirit means your skills have grown… and I have no right to say this, but this place and spirit sorcery are opposites.”
Mana was scarce in the tower. And spirits fed on pure mana.
Demonic energy and spirits were near-complete opposites.
“That’s true. But it also helped. Since mana is scarce, I had to produce the highest efficiency with the least mana. My mana control improved. The Spirit Pills you gave me also helped.”
And…
Ernan swallowed her last words.
She didn’t mention that as her mana heart repeatedly ran dry, the remnants of the elixirs she had not yet fully absorbed awakened throughout her body and merged into one.
He treated her fairly well, but he was still the Demon King.
“I see.”
Berje nodded.
“If you think summoning a mid-grade spirit means you can escape, you’re mistaken.”
“I won’t.”
“If you try and get caught, everything you’ve enjoyed until now will disappear. There won’t be a second time.”
“No one manages to contract a mid-grade spirit and climb the Ergest Mountains.”
Coming down was the same.
“Take good care of this airheaded girl. If she runs, it’s on you.”
“…That’s a bit unfair. I’m being nicer than anyone.”
“That’s called joint responsibility.”
“…Have you been to Pelto yet?”
“Not yet. I’ll look into it more and sweep everything up.”
“Ah.”
“Then good luck.”
He waved a hand and climbed to the fifth floor. Passing the empty throne, he entered the adjutant’s office, where Gordon—with reddened eyes—was rifling through documents.
“What are you doing now?”
“You have arrived, Demon King. Forgive me for not greeting you properly—I was busy working.”
Gordon replied without even turning his head.
“Work?”
“You ordered me to find a way to ruin a man named Zetoson, did you not?”
“Yes, I did.”
He had considered ordering Granada, but since Gordon happened to be idle at the time, he had decided to have Gordon deliver the task.
“So, have you found a method?”
“Not yet, but it should be soon. No, I will make sure it happens.”
“You can take your time.”
“No, I cannot!”
Gordon shouted.
“I, Gordon, swear upon the honor of the top graduate of the Demon Race Training School— I will surely wash away the disgrace of being called useless!”
Useless? He had never said that.
Berje frowned. He had never particularly thought that way.
But thinking about it now… it was true.
Granada was building up the mercenary company, and Ernan had made great contributions in stopping Hillan Cargill.
But Gordon? He had done nothing. Absolutely nothing. If anything, he just nagged and nitpicked beside him. A negative, really.
Of course, after they stopped Hillan Cargill, he had stopped nitpicking, but still.
“Well, you have been useless so far.”
“…I will prove myself!”
“Fine, do well.”
“Yes!”
Berje entered his office. He sat on the soft chair and reviewed the situation so far.
“I don’t think there’s a need to kidnap more princesses or princes for now…”
If he did too many in too short an interval, it would cause problems instead.
“Ah, right. The elves.”
He recalled his earlier plan—buying all the elf slaves and using them as vanguards.
But most of the 100,000 gold had ended up in Hillan Cargill’s hands.
Wuuung—
At that moment, the crystal orb vibrated.
“How convenient. I was just about to contact you myself.”
It was Hillan Cargill.
『You were going to contact me?』
“Elves. Buy every elf you can find in the slave market.”
『Elves? You plan to use them like Granada, I assume?』
『In that case, I contacted you at the perfect time.』
“What is it?”
『Aman Katrash has returned to the main family. He repented for his past, and the head has forgiven him.』
『He has become the family’s heir.』
“Oh?”
Wonderful news. It felt like a major step forward in his march toward conquering the continent.
“Didn’t you call him a troublemaker? Even as an only child, they wouldn’t forgive him that easily.”
『And who am I? Even if I failed once, the prestige I’ve built is not light.』
『I also invested some funds into their household. I made it clear that I invested because I trusted Aman Katrash.』
As expected.
Even if he had been a troublemaker, an only son weakened by the destruction of his aura hole would evoke pity. Add the endorsement and investment of the famed hero Hillan Cargill?
It was over.
There were almost no merits greater than that.
“Good.”
『I will deliver your orders to him. And I’ll contact you again if anything noteworthy occurs.』
“Very well.”
Berje smiled pleasantly.
Everything was going smoothly.
“The Hero Guild staying quiet, though… that’s a little unsettling.”
Even in his life before regression, they moved only at the very end. After he had already toppled several kingdoms, the heroes were finally dispatched in earnest and drove him to his death.
‘Which means there is still room to breathe.’
Back then, he had simply thought they were cowering in fear. But humans always had their own tangled circumstances.
‘I should ask Hillan later.’
And while he was at it, he would also look into the Hero with the red sword who had killed him.
Berje sank deeper into his chair.
* * *
The failure to subjugate the Demon King.
And the failure to rescue the princess.
Along with the Hero Guild, the one who reacted most sharply to both pieces of news was naturally the one who had commissioned them—Hilderan.
At first, when Watton Colo and half the hero squad had descended the mountain bearing severe injuries, their hope had not yet been extinguished.
“Watton Colo is unworthy of being a hero.”
“The princess was kidnapped, and he couldn’t even find the tower and fled instead.”
“We still have Hillan Cargill. Compared to Watton Colo, he is a far stronger hero.”
The ministers of Hilderan desperately disparaged Watton Colo and his group. Though anxiety gnawed at them, all they could do was pray earnestly for Hillan Cargill to return with the Crown Princess.
“Your Majesty! Hillan Cargill has returned! It’s a failure—an utter failure!”
Even Hillan Cargill’s failure was the worst outcome they had desperately wished to avoid.
“…Where is Hillan Cargill?”
“He is said to be holding a press conference in the Principality of Asoin.”
The Principality of Asoin was one of the nations composing the Trafarta Union.
“That insolent wretch! He departed under Hilderan’s commission, and if he failed, he should fall prostrate before His Majesty at once to report everything and beg for judgment…!”
The ministers erupted.
“Your Majesty! We cannot leave Hillan Cargill unchecked! Summon him at once and hold him accountable!”
“He must be held accountable!”
“…So it shall be.”
The gaze of Hilderan’s king turned cold.
“Request cooperation from the Principality of Asoin immediately and dispatch the knight order to bring Hillan Cargill back.”
“Your Majesty, it is customary to overlook a hero’s failure. Who would risk their life for Hilderan against the Demon King if failure were punished?”
“I have tolerated enough!”
The king roared. The minister who had offered counsel bowed his head.
“The Crown Princess is the nation’s foundation. The future of the kingdom. Even marching the army to crush the snowy mountains would not be excessive. Yet I endured it. Because it is custom! Because one must not raise an army over the Demon King! Because I believed that if I waited just a little longer, a hero named Hillan Cargill would bring the Crown Princess back!”
The king growled.
“And what is the result? Is this what I wished for? Or is this what you wished for?”
“Your Majesty…”
“If you understood what that child means to me—what she means to Hilderan—you would not tell me to endure any longer. I am already enduring far too much. Even the fact that I am not already marching the army north is an act of restraint.”
“The Hero Guild will not sit idly by.”
“Are you a subject of Hilderan or a spy of the Hero Guild? Do you fear that wretched guild more than Hilderan itself?”
“...”
“What are you waiting for? Send the Cheonghae Knight Order at once and bring the hero back! If he refuses, force him!”
“We obey!”
One of the greatest knight orders of the Kingdom of Hilderan—ranked among its top five—departed toward the Trafarta Union.