Chapter 37 : My Axe Was Going to Split Your Skull
Chapter 37: My Axe Was Going to Split Your Skull
Bolbof had wanted to stop Louise, but he failed. The only thing left for him to do was contact the homeland and report the current situation.
『You’re telling me you just let that happen?!』
“I’m sorry.”
『If she won’t listen, then you make her listen! Even if those Demon King bastards were keeping their heads down, walking into their territory of your own accord is an entirely different matter! You have no idea what could happen!』
“...I’m sorry.”
『If His Majesty hears of this… if something were to happen to the princess…』
The minister on the other side of the crystal sphere pressed a hand to his forehead. The king’s affection for his late-born daughter was far too famous.
『...It isn’t as if you’ve done anything wrong. This is all the consequence of His Majesty raising her far too indulgently.』
『Buy us just a few more days. I’ll find a way to send reinforcements and think of something.』
“Will Ormus stay still?”
『All those people want is equipment and money. Their pushback is just their way of demanding more. The finance minister may glare at me like he’s ready to kill, but what choice do I have? With the princess at stake, we must ensure her safe return no matter the cost.』
“...I’ll do what I can.”
『Yes, please—do whatever it takes.』
But what the minister hoped for never came to pass.
“Wait a few more days? And what if Roger disappears completely in that time? At least give an excuse that makes sense!”
At the tantrum of the unruly princess, a hundred soldiers marched straight into the Demon King’s territory.
---
The Kingdom of Ormus.
Half its land was shrouded in jungle, and the kingdom was desperately poor.
The earth was barren, the population scarce.
And public safety was unstable due to monsters bursting out of the jungle nearly every day.
The only way Ormus survived was through plunder.
Their numbers were small, but their lives revolved around struggle, and they had no choice but to grow strong.
They plundered one another, they plundered other nations. And because most of their territory was useless, barren land, many countries complained but did not bother to attack them.
But as the plunderers of Ormus grew bolder and bolder, they poked at the whiskers of the Zespine Empire—and the kingdom was driven to the brink of destruction.
Afterward, their choice was trade. They sold the by-products of jungle beasts and monsters throughout the continent, and plunder was officially forbidden.
“Louise Berfht is heading into the Demon King’s territory?”
But that was only ever a stopgap measure. With their income drastically lower, Ormus was always starving, and their greed remained unsated.
The offer from Berfht had been like a single drop of rain to the parched.
Dwarven-made armaments were excellent for the warriors of Ormus to use, but even if they sold them to other nations, they would fetch immense profit.
“This was quite the catch we didn’t expect.”
And so it was. Ormus wanted more armaments, and the princess failed to obtain what she wanted.
They had planned to use the grace period as leverage to extort even more armaments—yet who would have thought she would actually try to enter the Demon King’s territory.
“Princess Louise made the wrong choice. If things go poorly, she might even be kidnapped by the Demon King.”
The Beast Demon King and Ormus existed in a tacit symbiotic relationship.
They had never formally negotiated, but Ormus acknowledged the Demon King’s territory, and the Demon King did not step outside it.
Thanks to that, Ormus took no major damage and even enjoyed a steady income from the heroes who came seeking the Demon King’s Tower.
Thus, Ormus wished desperately for this fragile peace to remain unbroken. But if the princess of the Dwarven Kingdom were in danger, the situation changed.
“If we don’t help, the princess will suffer all manner of humiliation at the hands of that unruly and brutal Beast Demon King. Isn’t that right?”
“Your words are absolutely correct.”
“Especially since the jungle is not easy to escape if one doesn’t know the paths. We must send a rescue party at once.”
The retainers began agreeing one by one.
“And the Kingdom of Berfht would never ignore the ones who saved their princess.”
“Of course—if they have even a shred of conscience!”
“Even if we rescue her, for her own safety she must stay with us for the time being, shouldn’t she?”
“Yes, of course. If we go through the trouble of saving her, she shouldn’t be placed in danger again, right?”
The second prince of Ormus rose from his seat.
“Summon the knight order immediately and gather the forces. First, we save the princess—then I will report everything to Father personally.”
“We obey!”
Two hundred Ormus soldiers, led by the second prince, began racing toward Mount Mercon.
---
Quail was a bear beastkin.
He was one of the demons under Draxon and a commander who led numerous monsters.
Sniff, sniff—
Quail’s nose twitched. The keen senses of a beast swept across the surrounding scents.
“I smell humans and dwarves.”
“Not just dwarves, then?”
“There’s the smell of soil and dampness, mixed with beast-scent. People accustomed to the jungle—the scent of Ormus.”
“Why would those men be here?”
“That isn’t important.”
Quail bared his teeth.
“The order I received from the Demon King was to let no one enter Mount Mercon. Whether they are humans of Ormus or dwarves, it doesn’t matter.”
He spoke so, yet Quail took out a crystal sphere. He was loyal and straightforward, but he never foolishly misinterpreted his lord’s will.
『....』
A long silence. Draxon did not answer easily. Quail waited quietly for the command.
『...Drive them away with a proper scare.』
A voice tinged with anger—restrained, yet still simmering beneath the surface.
“...Is that truly acceptable?”
『Do not provoke me. No one is angrier than I am.』
At the deep growl, Quail closed his mouth.
『I want to kill them all. Tear off their limbs, rip out their hearts, and chew them to pieces.』
『My territory was violated, and those bastards think I’m some kind of pushover. They dare treat *me*, Draxon, like a stray mutt!』
But even so, he had to endure.
He could already see the future.
If he killed Louise, the root of all this?
The king of the Berfht Kingdom loved his late-born daughter far too dearly. If she died, the Berfht Kingdom would go mad.
There was a high chance that the tragedy from two hundred years ago would repeat itself.
Which was why—at least for now—he had to endure.
『But it won’t be long. As long as this matter goes as planned....』
---
“...The situation will change.”
Draxon pressed down his rising fury.
“The same goes for Ormus. Now is not the time to fight them.”
『Then we shall pretend to fight just enough and lure them elsewhere.』
“Good. Especially be careful with Princess Louise. She must not die under any circumstances.”
The connection cut. Draxon ground his teeth hard enough that the sound resembled bones being crushed.
“Are you all right?”
“It’s almost time.”
Draxon crushed the skull of the wolf he had been stroking. The wolf died without even a scream.
“Once we obtain that from Mount Mercon, everything will be resolved. Just a little longer.”
“It won’t be an all-powerful solution.”
“At the very least, our choices will broaden compared to now.”
Draxon tore the wolf’s hide with his bare hands. Only then did his anger settle slightly.
“But where in the hell is that damned Roger?”
Demons and monsters were scouring the territory, yet there wasn’t even a trace of the dwarf.
---
The jungle was harsh.
The ground was muddy, insects buzzed through the air, beasts darted about, and monsters revealed their untamed savagery.
Everything in the jungle was a problem, and the dwarves struggled to adapt to an environment they were unfamiliar with.
But for the people of Ormus, the jungle was home.
The dwarves were slow, and the warriors of Ormus were swift.
And so it happened—
the dwarves were caught by the scruff the moment they stepped into the outskirts of the Demon King’s territory.
“What is the meaning of this?”
“First time seeing them in person?”
Hundreds of warriors surrounded the dwarves. The dwarves tightened their grips on their weapons. Tension and hostility surged between the two sides.
“Welcome, princess of the dwarves.”
The ring of warriors parted. A tall man stepped out from among the rough warriors of Ormus, asserting his presence.
“I am Max Ormus, second prince of the Kingdom of Ormus.”
His black eyes curved faintly.
“And what exactly do you want?”
“As the rumors say, you certainly don’t look like a typical dwarf.”
His gaze swept over Louise from head to toe.
“No one’s ever spewed that kind of crap at me.”
“Am I the first?”
“No. They’re all dead. Their skulls got split by my axe.”
Louise tightened her grip on the massive battle-axe.
“How frightening. Were you feeling inferior? I actually like that you don’t look like a typical dwarf.”
Max chuckled. His tongue brushed across his lips.
“Mind getting those disgusting eyes off me?”
“Princess.”
Bolbof tried to stop her.
“I know.”
Louise forced down her anger. She was reckless, but she wasn’t stupid enough to start a fight with the prince of Ormus, in Ormus’s own territory.
“Move.”
“I’d like to grant your request if possible, but unfortunately, I cannot.”
“You want to try me?”
“I assume you at least understand that provoking the Demon King carelessly is forbidden. As a prince of Ormus, I have the authority to stop you.”
“I paid you people a ridiculous amount of money and armaments to search Ormus’s territory. Which means I have the right to continue that search.”
“That did not include the Demon King’s territory.”
“Oh well. It did for me.”
Their gazes clashed sharply.
“Move.”
Louise repeated.
“If you continue like this, for your safety and the peace of Ormus, I’ll have no choice but to impose restrictions.”
“You’re provoking me on purpose, aren’t you?”
“Of course not.”
Bolbof asked for the princess’s understanding and stepped forward.
“Then we will return.”
Bolbof, in fact, felt grateful to Max. Louise was furious, but being blocked by Ormus was far better than being caught by the Demon King.
However—
“You must be under our protection. With the princess’s unruly temperament, couldn’t she pretend to return and then slip into the Demon King’s territory again?”
“What did you just say, you son of a—?”
“How long will this last?”
“Well....”
His ambiguous tone was so blatant that even a fool could see through it. Bolbof grit his teeth. He really should have stopped Louise no matter what.
“Prince Max! Do you think the homeland will stay silent? This benefits neither side!”
“That’s your opinion.”
“Prince!”
“We did all we could to stop your entry for the princess’s safety, but the unruly princess struck first, and we had no choice but to respond. And in the midst of that, monsters rushed in and chaos broke out. If we said that—what then?”
Ping—
He flicked his sword playfully.
“There will be some sacrifice, but if it’s for the princess’s rescue, isn’t that a noble sacrifice?”
“If you fail to kill me, you won’t be able to shut my mouth.”
“That part doesn’t particularly matter.”
What mattered was that the princess was in Ormus’s custody.
Ormus had no particular ties to Berfht anyway. This meant that after demanding enormous compensation for this incident, they could sever relations without regret.
Like a mask falling away, a full smile bloomed across Max’s face.
“Escort the Princess of the Berfht Kingdom with utmost courtesy. And if there are obstacles…”
Max released his killing intent.
“Remove them all. Blame it on the monsters if necessary.”
The warriors of Ormus roared. Their sharpened weapons flashed in the sunlight.
“Never thought I’d end up cutting down dwarves with dwarven-made weapons.”
“Protect the princess!”
The two groups clashed. Screams and battle cries sent flocks of birds flying into the sky.
“Show these humans the pride of the great dwarves!”
The dwarves did not retreat. To them, the princess was someone who must be protected at all costs, and they were more than willing to throw away their lives for her. Their loyalty ran that deep.
But it was not enough. The jungle was Ormus’s home turf, and their numbers were overwhelming.
Dwarves began to fall one by one. Red blood soaked into the earth.
“What an amusing little spectacle.”
Without so much as a sound—
An uninvited guest appeared.
“...!”
There had been no footsteps, no presence. He was simply *there*, as though he had been standing since the beginning.
Max did not even realize the man existed until he spoke. That fact alone sent chills down Max’s spine.
“...Who are you.”
Max leapt down from the rock where he had been watching the battlefield.
“Your Highness, we’ll handle him.”
“Stand back. He’s not someone you can deal with.”
His instincts screamed danger. But Max forced down the unease.
Because they were killing dwarves here, any unintended witness had to be silenced.
Yes—he must die.
Max was one of the strongest within the kingdom, and he had a solid contingent of soldiers with him.
“…I don’t know how you made it here, but let’s just say your luck ran out.”
“Luck?”
“A man who’s about to die doesn’t need to know any more than that.”
“So you’re saying trash like you is going to kill me?”
Instead of responding, Max thrust out his fist. The body he trained by running through the jungle was harder than most weapons. His fist was both blunt weapon and lethal tool.
Claaang—
A shockwave quaked through the surroundings.
The intruder and Max both stepped back one pace.
“...As I thought!”
His intuition had been right—this would not be easy.
It was the first time since becoming an adult that someone fighting barehanded had matched him blow for blow.
“How entertaining.”
His sense of foreboding vanished, replaced by excitement. Meeting a worthy opponent made his muscles twitch.
He stomped forward again. Aura surged up. Red killing intent wrapped around his fist.
Drawing a crimson arc, he tore through the air.
CRAAANG—
The recoil was tremendous. Even so, Max advanced a step, forcing his way through the backlash. He brought down his opposite fist in a crushing strike.
The intruder stepped back one pace.
“Use your aura.”
Max whispered.
“This isn’t your best, is it?”
That strange sensation had long since faded from his mind. He wanted the opponent he had finally found to fight him with everything they had.
And—
“If that’s what you want.”
The opponent accepted his proposal.
“I’ll grant it.”
In that instant—
Something exploded.
KWOoooOOOM—
Something writhed. Thick darkness. A distant abyss.
Sticky, ominous, unbearably heavy.
Max sucked in a breath as the black tide crashed over him. The frenzy burning inside him cooled instantly. A chill ran down his spine.
“...demon?”
A demon. And an overwhelmingly powerful one.
KWAANG—
A massive impact made him cough blood. His body was hurled ten meters back. His forearms throbbed where he had instinctively blocked.
“Go on—keep trying to endure.”
The opponent whispered. The voice was soft, but the madness within it utterly dwarfed Max’s own.
“GaaAAAH!”
His insides churned. His body stiffened. Pain piled up, and all he could do was block—he couldn’t even think of resisting.
He retreated, and retreated again. He wanted to call for help, but no sound came out. He couldn’t allow even the smallest opening.
I’m going to die. I’m really going to die.
Like this? When everything had been going so well? Because a demon suddenly appeared?
“Is this the Beast Demon King’s will?!”
Max cried out in desperation. The opponent paused for the briefest moment.
“Are you saying you intend to break the tacit agreement between Ormus and the Beast Demon King?!”
“Yeah, I intend to break it, you bastard.”
The answer came from somewhere else.
CRACK—
Blinding pain tore through Max’s skull. Hot blood streamed down his face.
“Ah.”
“My axe was going to split your skull.”
His pupils slowly rolled to the side. A massive axe cast its shadow over him.
He hadn’t realized—
that the steps he’d taken while retreating had brought him right before the princess who wanted him dead.
That he had shown his back to her in utter defenselessness.
“I told you. Anyone who mocks me like that is already dead.”
“...You bit…ch—!”
Those became his last words.
Thud—
Max collapsed. The focus vanished from his eyes.
“YOUR HIGHNESSSSS!”
The warriors of Ormus screamed.