Chapter 88 : The Deal
Chapter 88: The Deal
“My goodness, Sister! This isn’t fun at all!”
“Find the princess!”
Akan, who had been trying to leave the blood-soaked, corpse-strewn scene as fast as possible, suddenly found the fire at his heels.
“Cher is nowhere to be seen.”
“Are you saying my sister hid herself of her own accord? With a massive creature like the Behemoth right before her eyes?”
“···That would be impossible. Not unless something far more interesting appeared.”
“There will be nothing more interesting than the Behemoth right now.”
Knights and soldiers searched in every direction. The mages unfolded detection magic.
But their search did not last long.
Krrr—
Kwoooaaah!
The long-time rulers of the mountain range, drawn by the noise of battle and the scent of blood, began gathering one by one.
“···Your Highness, we must retreat for now.”
“······.”
“Her Highness Lavinia disappeared together with the Titan. That means she was not in danger, but discovered something on her own. She is not someone who would fall in a place like this, is she?”
“Well, that’s true, but···.”
Cain bit his lip.
He absolutely had to find Lavinia.
She was his sister, and at the same time the spiritual pillar of the Chimera School. Many mages did not wish for her death. There were also many who would do anything to save her.
But he could not endanger their entire force because of her.
They could endure here for a while.
There were still golems remaining, and their combat strength was high. But they could not wait endlessly for her when no one knew where she had disappeared to.
Considering they had just fought a battle and still had to descend the mountain, it was undeniably a terrible move.
“···We retreat.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Akan’s group began their retreat.
---
Krrr—
The monsters who had gathered in pursuit of battle and blood smacked their lips at the sight of Peul Orcs and human corpses scattered everywhere.
But soon they faltered and stepped back.
A massive presence, appearing after the humans departed, made them hesitate.
“Begone, you stupid beasts.”
Even at the Demon King’s threat, the monsters did not fully withdraw. At the hostility in their eyes, Berje clicked his tongue.
“I really must be weakening.”
To be looked down on by such trash.
“My last warning.”
Krrrrr—
The Demon King released his demonic energy. His eyes darkened to black. Dragon scales rose along his skin.
“Get lost.”
Dragon Fear.
At the lofty pressure of the superior predator, the monsters tucked their tails and fled.
The Peul Orcs formed a circle, as if guarding the remains.
“A golem, it’s a golem!”
A dwarf rushed past them and threw himself onto the golem half-buried in the snow.
He checked its body with his eyes and hammered it with his fist. After touching this and that, he let out a cry of admiration.
“This brilliant sheen! It is definitely an orichalcum alloy!”
Because of the monsters drawn by the blood, Akan’s group had not been able to retrieve everything.
The shattered remains of the golem were among those things.
‘More accurate to say they were too distracted by the Behemoth.’
After all, the corpses of their allies and the Behemoth’s body had disappeared without a trace. They had planned to collect those first and deal with the rest later.
That actually worked out well for Berje.
His gaze shifted elsewhere. A human lying as if dead, completely passed out. The golem-maker Krutu had abducted on his orders.
Akan’s group probably thought he had simply been killed by the surrounding orc horde.
Along with the golem, this was an enormous harvest.
Then it happened.
Berje, surveying the battlefield, paused. Something strange brushed against his senses.
“······.”
He extended his hand lightly. Black flames clung to the white snow. With blistering heat, they melted everything.
Three meters, five meters, ten meters, twenty meters. They dug into the ground. And then a monster revealed itself. Extremely pale, unmoving—almost indistinguishable from a corpse.
“······.”
“······.”
Within the monster’s arms, a woman curled up raised her head. Their eyes met.
“Demon King.”
“Princess?”
No, why was this woman here?
“Why are you···?”
“Demonic energy.”
“You sensed my demonic energy?”
She shook her head.
Her finger pointed past Berje.
Krutu.
“Orc. Run.”
Her fingers crossed into an X.
It meant she had sensed Krutu not running away but lingering nearby. Even amidst the Behemoth’s rampage.
Lavinia tapped lightly on the Titan. The Titan’s chest, which had felt lifeless like a corpse, began to move faintly.
At the same time, demonic energy—almost unnoticeable until now—stirred.
“······!”
Berje was shocked.
It was an astonishing sight. A Titan, whose entire bodily functions had ceased and who could emit no energy at all, was coming back to life.
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New Terms/Characters Introduced
None
That this method could deceive even the Demon King, if only for a brief moment—
And that it was created not by another demon, but by a mere human—
“How did you do it?”
“Death.”
“I know you brought it close to death.”
“Close?”
Berje barely suppressed the urge to kill.
“Demon King. I will kill her.”
“No, stop.”
He stopped Krutu, who had thrust his blade forward.
Berje began from the fundamentals.
‘With the ground dug up this deeply, there’s no way Akan’s people wouldn’t have noticed.’
And since the princess had vanished, there was no way they would simply leave. Which meant her current stunt had been permitted by the prince of Akan.
And the prince’s permission was the king’s permission.
In other words, Akan knew she had been lying in ambush here.
‘For what purpose?’
To look for the tower?
Or—
‘Did they know I would come?’
A chill crept up his spine. It wasn’t an impossible thought.
There had been a precedent—Berje had appeared before Lavinia to protect Krutu. If Akan had laid a trap based on that?
If they knew Peul Orcs would appear at the battlefield they abandoned, and Lavinia approached to find Berje?
Berje reached a single conclusion.
He must never kill Lavinia Akan.
She must never die an unnatural death here.
‘These damn—!’
He thought of Draxon, whose neck had been metaphorically strangled by the death of Max Ormus.
“Why are you here?”
“If I leave···.”
“Come out.”
Tok tok—
Lavinia tapped on the Titan. The creature, which had returned from corpse to life, raised its massive torso. With a single leap, it burst out of the twenty-meter-deep pit.
Lavinia jumped down from the Titan’s shoulder.
“Did Akan’s prince ask you? To wait for me because I might come?”
“No.”
“No?”
“Mm. I alone.”
“Alone?”
So it hadn’t been discussed with the prince or Akan’s leadership?
It was ridiculous—yet not entirely unbelievable.
Lavinia Akan. Anyone who knew even a little about her would know that such a thing was not at all impossible.
She was a bomb impossible to properly control.
But the possibility of a trap still couldn’t be completely dismissed.
“Why did you wait alone?”
“Deal.”
“You want to make a deal?”
Her finger pointed at Berje.
“Monster, demon race.”
Then pointed at herself.
“Money, help.”
“You want to give me money in exchange for monsters?”
“Mm.”
What appeared in her pupils was pure passion. Madness. Greed.
Berje remembered how she had been rescued from Draxon’s Tower—how she said she had acquired monsters from Rozel Charnte in exchange for money.
And he knew that was only the beginning.
‘In that light, hiding from her own brother makes sense, but···.’
“Oh, if it’s help, then perhaps with making golems—”
“Shut up.”
“···Yes.”
Roger, who had barged in without reading the mood, whimpered.
“You knew I would come?”
“Guess. Demonic energy.”
She guessed it after sensing his demonic energy.
‘Wait—if she did all this alone···.’
Then Akan would simply think she’d gone missing in the Ergest Mountains. Meaning her disappearance would not automatically be attributed to Berje.
He had no intention of abducting her. Locking her in the tower would be foolish.
But—
‘If she were simply a bit late in returning?’
Lavinia Akan was an authority on chimera creation. A human adept in both demonic energy and mana.
As Roger said, she was undeniably the perfect candidate to create the golem’s core.
If he used her help to complete the core and then sent her back afterward—
Then everyone would simply assume she got lost in the harsh Ergest terrain.
“If you wish it, I can make a deal with you.”
“Happy.”
“But there is a condition.”
“······?”
“I will take you to the tower. You will cooperate with me inside the tower.”
“Mm.”
“And you must keep secret the fact that you met me, that you entered the tower, and that you discovered it. You must not tell anyone.”
“Why?”
“Because I want it that way.”
“Mm.”
She nodded obediently.
Berje knew she would keep it.
‘Even before regression, she did.’
He had never been directly involved with Lavinia. But he had heard the legends of her deeds.
‘Even when her cooperation with Jason became public, she never revealed what they actually did.’
When asked why, she simply said she had promised to keep silent. Even with countless kingdoms pressuring her, she never opened her mouth.
Berje chose to believe that precedent—her unique way of thinking.
“Let’s go.”
The Orcs gathered the remains of the golem. With the newly added companions—the princess and the Titan—they returned to the tower.
“Tower···.”
“Yes, it’s the tower.”
“Cannon.”
“Mana cannon.”
“Many.”
“All my creations, Princess!”
Roger puffed out his chest proudly.
“I.”
“You will help Roger make the golem’s core. As for convincing him, do that on your own.”
Lavinia nodded. Then she extended her hand.
“Monster.”
“The golem core comes first.”
“···Promise.”
She stuck out her finger.
“Fine.”
“Promise.”
She didn’t withdraw her finger. Berje hooked his own finger around hers, having no choice—he was the one in need.
“Yes, a promise. And in return, you will keep it secret that you came to the tower, that you cooperated, and everything you saw here.”
“Mm. Promise. Keep. I also. Keep.”
She nodded.
Then—suddenly—a very small sense of dread crept in.
She was pure. Therefore, she never lied.
If Berje asked her to keep the tower’s location secret, she would.
Even with a blade pressed to her throat, she would keep it.
But if Akan asked her—
Would Lavinia Akan truly say, “I don’t know,” or would she say, “Secret”?
A heavy dread ran down his spine. Berje asked carefully:
“If your brother asks whether you found the tower, what will you say?”
“Secret.”
“···Oh, for f—”
---
“When will he contact us?”
『Wait.』
“I’ve already waited days.”
『And?』
At the dark elf’s blunt reply, Hillan inwardly ground his teeth. But he had worked too hard building his reputation to throw it away over something like this.
“Is he still being pressured by Akan?”
Receiving no information at all from the Demon King’s side was maddening. He wanted to hear something—anything—about the Frozen Lands from the Demon King as soon as possible.
『It’s none of your concern.』
“Understood. Please tell him I request a reply as soon as possible.”
『Very well.』
The connection cut. Hillan immediately sent a servant to the Guild’s annex palace, where the nobles from various countries were staying after attending the banquet.
Many were lingering to build ties with the heroes present.
“There is an invitation asking if you would join them for lunch today.”
“Tell them I would be honored.”
The appointment approached quickly.
Hillan dressed neatly and entered the annex. The knights guarding the entrance opened the door upon seeing his face.
He walked through the corridor into a spacious, lavish dining hall. A guest was already waiting.
“Count Tomhal.”
Hillan bowed his head.
“It’s good to see you like this, Great Hero Hillan Cargill!”
Count Tomhal welcomed him enthusiastically.
“Sit.”
“Yes.”
When he clapped his hands, servants began bringing food. Warm tomato soup was served first.
“I was surprised when you said you wished to speak so suddenly.”
“Was that so?”
“At the same time, I was pleased. Aren’t you the first to approach me first?”
“That’s correct.”
“Heh, eat. The chef here is exceptional.”
The tomato soup was pleasantly tangy, salty, and rich—an excellent combination.
“It’s delicious.”
“The main will be even better.”
The main dish was roast chicken, with spices tucked between the skin and the meat. The burst of juices was exquisite.
The Count laid aside the chicken bones and spoke.
“Now tell me.”
“Do you know what is happening in Hortonwork?”
“Hortonwork, hm.”
Count Tomhal let out a low hum. His eyes swept over Hillan in a peculiar way. Under that gaze, Hillan spoke again.
“I know Akan’s forces have arrived in Hortonwork.”
“···How?”
“It’s hardly a secret, is it?”
“It was a secret. Even if it has leaked, it wasn’t something you should have been able to learn so easily.”
“I am the Guild’s Argann.”
“This incident was led by Akan. They did not cooperate with the Hero Guild.”
Which meant no information had leaked to the Guild.
“And there isn’t even a guild branch in Hortonwork.”
“After failing to find the Demon King’s tower and retreating, I placed someone in Hortonwork.”
“Placed someone?”
“Just in case. I thought we might catch sight of demons coming down to abduct royalty.”
“A strange excuse.”
“But it’s the truth.”
“Then you could simply ask that person.”
“I’m asking because the atmosphere around Akan’s camp is chaotic, and their secrecy is strict.”
Hillan’s eyes hardened.
“Count, surely between us, you can tell me at least this much? Who knows—perhaps someday I may be of help to you.”
“Mm.”
The Count pondered for a moment, then nodded.
“Don’t forget this favor.”
“Of course.”
“I don’t know the exact details, but from what I’ve heard···”
“Heard?”
“Akan’s Third Princess has gone missing. In the Ergest Mountains.”
“···The Third Princess—surely you don’t mean?”
“Yes. The Chimera Princess.”
“······!”
This was insane.
There are things in this world one may touch—
And things one must never, ever touch.
The glorious bloodlines of stubborn dwarves.
The idol of those obsessed with magic.
And Berje—
Had managed to touch both.
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New Terms/Characters Introduced
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