The Demon King Overrun by Heroes

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Chapter 73-Unedited: This Place Is Insane

Before his regression, Berje had rarely left the tower.

The only times he had gone outside were when he occasionally kidnapped a royal.

It was natural.

The Demon King had to remain within the tower to face the heroes, but he was also the very core of the invading army.

When the Demon King died, the tower vanished.

And when the tower vanished, the demons became mere prey for humans.

Because the Demon King was the key figure who had to survive until the very end, he always had to remain somewhere safe.

However, after his regression, Berje had been forced to move across the continent. Perhaps he had grown too used to it, for whenever he stayed inside the tower without doing anything, it felt suffocating.

No, it made him anxious.

Because the heroes were growing stronger.

Because he had not yet reached the level he had attained back then.

At any moment, the hero’s campaign could begin, and the tower might be discovered.

The hero’s sword could pierce through his heart once again.

‘Ralph Schmitz. And the Hero of the Red Sword.’

Above all, those two bothered him the most.

He had met Ralph Schmitz not long ago. He had ordered Granada to investigate him, but the man had vanished without a trace.

That was unsettling.

And the Hero of the Red Sword was the one who had pierced his heart. Even if he lived a lifetime, even if he succeeded in his revenge, he would never forget.

“I hope we can find plenty again today.”

“Yeah.”

That was why Berje often roamed the mountain ranges with Ernan—to find elixirs, corrupt them with demonic energy, and either consume them himself or bestow them upon the Peul Orcs.

To strengthen the orc legions that would fight their enemies.

Berje and Ernan rode across the mountains atop a massive Frost Wolf.

Ernan pressed her cheek against its soft fur.

“I hope we can find a lot this time.”

“Yeah.”

Recently, they had found twelve additional elixirs, tainted them, and handed them over to Krutu. He had consumed one and distributed the other ten among his subordinates, forming a royal guard.

The number of tribes united under him had grown to seven, numbering in the hundreds.

Their strengthening was Berje’s strengthening.

Then—

“Hm…?”

Ernan pursed her lips.

“What is it?”

“The spirits sensed something strange. It feels like a monster, but not exactly… and like a demonic creature, but not quite that either…?”

She tilted her head.

“Like a monster but not one?”

“It’s not that far. Maybe four kilometers away?”

“Let’s go.”

When Berje tugged on the Frost Wolf’s fur, it darted swiftly through the snow-covered peaks.

Kwooooh—

A roar echoed. A faint metallic scent of blood tingled in his nose.

‘Demonic energy?’

As they closed in, he felt the demonic energy.

It was filthy and repulsive enough to make him frown.

‘No way…?’

A strange sense of déjà vu made him clutch the wolf’s fur tighter. The beast howled and ran faster.

And finally—

“What… is that?”

They faced the “thing” devouring a troll’s torn limbs.

Its torso was that of an orc.

Its elongated arms belonged to a troll, and its lower body, resembling that of a centaur, was that of a Hellhound.

Grrr—

Its red eyes spotted Berje and Ernan. The Frost Wolf bristled and tensed.

The creature dropped the troll and leapt. Berje hurled a fireball the size of his fist.

KWA-A-A-AANG—

An explosion erupted midair.

The creature, its lower half melted away, twitched on the ground.

“It’s an artificial lifeform forcibly stitched together with magic. Commonly called…”

“A chimera?”

“Yeah, a chimera.”

Berje’s expression hardened.

“Seems that troublesome woman has wandered this far.”

With a snap of his fingers, flames surged and consumed the corpse, leaving not a trace behind.

Berje turned around.

“Let’s go back.”

“Yes.”

“For a while, we won’t be coming out to search for elixirs.”

“Is that person dangerous?”

“We avoid filth not because it’s scary, but because it’s filthy.”

The two soon returned to the tower.

Berje immediately summoned Krutu to the tower. The orc arrived, his glossy hair fluttering.

“You called for me.”

“Have you ever come across any strange monsters while expanding your territory?”

“Strange monsters, my lord…?”

“Something that looks like it’s made of mismatched limbs or patched with weird parts.”

“Do such monsters exist?”

Krutu, who had lived his entire life in the Ergest Mountains, didn’t know what a chimera was. Thus, Berje explained differently.

“Just tell me if you’ve seen any monsters unlike the usual mountain beasts.”

“There have been none.”

“I see.”

Then had he merely stumbled upon a stray one by coincidence?

‘Impossible.’

Chimeras—creatures born of artificially fused life—were entirely human creations.

Though often associated with black mages because they used living beings or corpses, the field itself had little to do with black magic.

There was no way one could just “happen” upon such a thing.

‘It’s that woman.’

Chimera creation, in the end, was magic—and magic bore the distinct traces of its caster’s nature and temperament.

In other words, a chimera retained the mark of its creator. And Berje recognized that aura.

Which meant he had to stay away.

Just as he had told Ernan, filth was not something worth dealing with.

“In the future, strange monsters like the one I described might appear in the mountains.”

“I will slay them all.”

“No, avoid them.”

“Avoid them?”

“Yeah. If you even see traces of one, don’t engage. Neither you nor your subordinates are to show yourselves before it.”

“Yes, I shall obey.”

“Aren’t you curious why?”

“I am, but I am your vassal, my lord. If the Demon King commands, I simply obey.”

“…”

Berje fell silent at the thoroughly demon-like response.

‘…Why am I surprised? This is how it should be.’

The Demon Realm was a world ruled by strength. When a superior gave an order, unquestioning obedience was natural.

To follow the Demon King’s command without hesitation was the proper way for a vassal and subordinate.

Then why had he started to feel otherwise?

There was no need to think deeply about it.

Granada.

Hillan Cargill.

Roger and Ernan, too.

He had taken only non-demons as subordinates, so this problem was inevitable.

And though it had lessened now, his frequent clashes with Gordon—the only true demon among them—had stemmed from his deviation from convention from the very start.

It had been so long since he had last spoken with a proper demon that the moment felt strangely nostalgic.

“I was right to take you as my vassal.”

“…What?”

“It’s nothing. A chimera is something humans create. If you run into a chimera, you’ll inevitably run into the mage who made it.”

“If it’s a human, wouldn’t it be enough to just kill them?”

“With ordinary humans, yes, that would make things easy—but the master of a chimera is a bit more troublesome. So just ignore them.”

“Then they must be a noble or royal of some kingdom.”

“Correct.”

“I’ll obey your command.”

“The chimera may be mixed with monsters, so if you sense any unfamiliar demonic energy, avoid it immediately. And report it without fail.”

“Yes. I’ll make sure to warn the tribesmen thoroughly.”

Krutu returned to his tribesmen. Roger, who had been pretending to hammer away at a mana cannon while eavesdropping, spoke up.

“Um…”

“What is it?”

“When you say ‘chimera’…”

“You know what a chimera is.”

“You said it’s mixed with monsters…”

“So?”

“Then doesn’t that mean the creator can handle monsters?”

“That would follow.”

“Then… also demonic energy?”

“That too, I suppose…?”

By then, Berje realized what Roger was trying to say.

“Rejected.”

“If we could bring that mage here, the golem production could progress much faster! I don’t know how they obtain monsters and create chimeras, but they’re an ideal talent.”

“That may be true.”

Roger brightened at Berje’s mild agreement. The process of forming a golem’s core with demonic energy had been stalled, causing him headaches. A mage capable of creating chimeras by merging monsters could only seem like a beacon of hope to him.

“Though in exchange, your head might become part of a chimera.”

“…What?”

“Listen carefully.”

Berje leaned in close, uttering each word slowly and clearly.

“That woman.”

“She’s even crazier.”

“Than Louise Berfht.”

Hic!

At the mention of Louise’s name, Roger’s legs nearly gave out, his mind denying reality.

“Th-that’s impossible. There can’t be a woman more insane than the Second Princess…”

“Do I have any reason to lie to you about that?”

“…No.”

“I’ll take care of finding the mage myself. You focus on finishing the first floor. The golems can be made after the mana cannons there are complete.”

“…Yes.”

Leaving the trembling Roger behind, Berje placed his foot on the steps leading upward.

* * *

As a guest of Louise Berfht, Hillan Cargill was treated with the utmost hospitality.

Dozens of attendants waited on him and the Red Hawk Assault Unit, and every meal was a lavish feast.

“Ah, this is nice.”

Burp—

Bark, the former captain of the Red Hawk Mercenary Company, tore the last bit of meat from the bone.

“Right? It’s been so long since we’ve had it this easy.”

“Yeah. After Ergest, after the Beast’s Tower, it’s been nothing but hardship.”

The members chuckled and nodded in agreement.

The Red Hawk Assault Unit had come to the Berfht Kingdom with Hillan Cargill as envoys of the Hero Guild, but they themselves had little to do.

Meeting the king or princess was Hillan Cargill’s task, and negotiations on behalf of the guild fell to his aide Farni and a few administrative staff.

Thanks to that, the Red Hawks had plenty of idle time to relax.

Among them was Granada, but unlike the others, he couldn’t afford to act carefree.

‘The Demon King is coming.’

Berje had said so with certainty, which meant he would come. The only question was when and how.

‘He told me to stop the kidnapping at all costs.’

He worried whether he could really prevent the abduction.

‘No, as long as Hillan Cargill is here, it won’t be impossible.’

But that thought led to another.

‘Has he lost his mind? Trying to kidnap the Dwarven Princess?’

Was it because he was newly descended and didn’t understand the situation?

‘Or…’

Was it a calculated scheme?

Granada remembered Berje’s first move—

How he had unexpectedly kidnapped the Crown Princess of Hilderan, causing chaos and overturning common sense with a counterattack no one could have foreseen.

If this new Demon King was anything like Berje, then perhaps history would repeat itself.

‘…Well, it’s not really my concern.’

He still had ninety-nine years left to serve the Demon King anyway.

He gave a dry chuckle—

KWA-AANG!

A massive explosion erupted.

“Everyone, arm yourselves!”

Granada sprinted forward.

Thick black smoke was rising from Louise Berfht’s palace.

Typically, the Demon King—or demons—conducted kidnappings at night.

Night—

The time when living beings were meant to sleep.

When vigilance inevitably waned.

But for demons, it was when their power brimmed most.

Vivian Blunt took full advantage of that.

Even if the Dwarven Kingdom was underground, it wasn’t a difficult task.

All she had to do was grab the sleeping princess and run.

Yes, that was the plan.

“Welcome.”

The knight guarding the door was large for a dwarf, but she didn’t think much of it.

When he muttered to himself, she assumed he was just another lunatic.

But—

When she realized that knight was a hero—

When his gaze turned precisely toward where she was hiding—

She could no longer dismiss it.

“…You can see me?”

“Clearly.”

The suspicion she had felt was confirmed. Vivian’s pupils trembled as the armored knight drew his sword.

“…Why is a hero here?”

Of course, she knew this dimension had an unusually large number of heroes.

But still—

A hero of this caliber guarding a princess’s door?

The number 3198 flashed across her mind.

Just how insane was this dimension—this Arein?

“I don’t think I’m obliged to answer that.”

The knight didn’t reply further. Instead, he unleashed his aura. The great swing of his blade cleaved through the palace wall and hurtled toward Vivian’s neck.

“—!”

Vivian screamed silently.

It was only a single strike, but she felt the ferocity within it.

If she clashed, she would die.

She realized she couldn’t win—not in her current state.

‘And I’m supposed to be a Demon King who conquered an entire dimension!’

It was humiliating, but that aura was far too overwhelming for her to face head-on.

Grinding her teeth, Vivian ducked low and dashed forward. The slash grazed her, cutting off a few strands of her hair.

‘If I run now, I’ll never get another chance.’

Her opponent was formidable; once she retreated, she would be forced to retreat endlessly. That, she could never allow.

KWAANG—

Her body shot past the hero, shattering the door.

Vivian scanned the room quickly.

‘I need to kidnap the princess and escape from here.’

She had no hope in a frontal battle, but she was confident she wouldn’t lose in retreat. After all, at the Demon King Military Academy, the two most essential lessons were stealth and escape.

But—

“So you’re the demon who came to kidnap me?”

It wasn’t a peacefully sleeping princess who greeted her.

“How should I smash your skull to make sure everyone knows I did it properly?”

It was a roaring beast, gripping a battle axe.

“You bitch.”

The enormous blade came crashing down toward Vivian.

“…This place is insane.”

Vivian swallowed a groan.

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