Chapter 100 : Hide, Right Now
Chapter 100: Hide, Right Now
The snowy plains were vast.
Cold all year round.
The blizzards that swept through every other day obscured visibility, and the biting chill froze everything solid.
A natural enemy.
Even for Berje Deias, a dragon and a fire dragon.
Even for Pale, who possessed the flames of the Phoenix.
The snowy plains were never a place they liked.
All the more so because Reina’s presence could be felt everywhere, as if the land itself boasted of being her domain.
It was his second time secretly slipping into another Demon King’s territory, but that didn’t make the feeling any more pleasant.
“Will you be able to find Hillan?”
“It’s an easy matter.”
Of course. Armani’s Orb was embedded in that bastard’s head. As long as his head didn’t explode or shift dimensions, he couldn’t escape Berje’s grasp.
But simply knowing didn’t mean he could find him easily.
The snowy plains.
The domain of the Frost Demon King, Reina Sordein.
He wasn’t going in his Demon King form, so the same thing that happened with Draxon wouldn’t occur… but…
‘On the other hand, that means I can’t use my full strength, and I might not be able to save Hillan.’
Come to think of it, even with full strength it wouldn’t be easy.
He hadn’t strengthened his tower, hadn’t expanded his domain, and hadn’t purchased anything that removed interference power—so Berje’s combat power hadn’t changed much since his descent.
Unless one was someone weak from the beginning, like Vivian the succubus who descended later, Berje was inevitably weaker than the other three Demon Kings.
‘Above all, the situation is the worst.’
Reina said she would make an example out of Hillan.
If she declared it with such confidence, she wouldn’t do it half-heartedly.
Of course, she wouldn’t act personally… but…
High-grade frost demons had likely been sent out in swarms.
If they attacked, Berje wouldn’t be able to win in his current state.
‘Damn it.’
He had to break through countless monsters, magical beasts, and demons to rescue Hillan Cargill. Without being exposed as a Demon King.
It was a difficulty worthy of the curse “damned Arein.”
‘All this because I tried to fix that arrogant brat’s attitude…’
It had become the worst possible outcome.
He admitted it. This time was his mistake.
He underestimated Reina Sordein and trusted Hillan Cargill too much. Tried to discipline him while still believing in him.
If things went wrong, almost everything he had built since descending could crumble.
Not everything, but most of it.
‘Still, it’s not too late to undo it.’
As long as he rescued Hillan safely, nothing would change.
The problem was how to save him.
He couldn’t force his way through with brute strength.
And in a snowy plain filled with nothing but snow and monsters, there was little to devise.
‘If there’s nothing, I’ll make something.’
Berje headed back to the south. Using the straight-line transport magic circle cost a massive amount of money, but that didn’t matter.
“Demon King!”
“No time for chatter. Hand over everything you have. Now.”
“Wouldn’t it be better if I used it myself?”
“You can survive the snowy plains? I don’t have the luxury to protect you while running.”
“Actually, dwarves prefer the south over the north.”
After receiving what he needed, he returned north and reunited with Ernan and Granada.
It took three days. He solved what he could with money, and ran through the rest.
“We’re not too late, right?”
“Don’t worry. That guy is alive.”
If Hillan Cargill died, Armani’s Orb would vanish. Its disappearance would be transmitted to its owner.
There had been no signal yet.
“That’s a relief. But will that thing really work?”
“At the very least, it’ll be better than nothing.”
He just needed them to hesitate for a moment. He was confident in fleeing afterward.
“Ernan, you…”
“I’m going too.”
“The snowy plains are dangerous. We need to save Hillan quickly and run. I don’t have room to look after you.”
“You don’t have to look after me.”
“You’re that confident?”
“I’ll be more useful. At least in the snowy plains.”
“And your reason?”
“Lady Nairuniel.”
“I see.”
He accepted it.
Ernan was an exceptional spirit sorceress. The fact she could summon a high-grade spirit alone proved that.
She could handle herself anywhere—but in the snowy plains, where water and its transformed form, ice, dominated, a spirit sorceress with a high-grade water spirit had no reason to be weak.
Especially given how much faster she was achieving results compared to before his regression.
‘Against mid-grade demons, or weaker high-grade ones, she might be able to hold out.’
As long as it wasn’t frost demons.
In any case, Ernan would be a help, not a burden.
“Fine.”
“Thank you!”
“And me…?”
“You’re coming no matter what. Don’t tell me you can’t keep up.”
Granada had been overshadowed by Hillan Cargill lately, but he was never weak.
Maybe at the start—after a long life as a slave had weakened him—but not now. After experiencing the hero’s march, he had grown more noticeable than before.
‘This guy isn’t an ordinary elf either.’
The fact the elves trusted and followed him so readily made that clear.
He hid it because he didn’t care, and because it wasn’t important—but Berje had guessed enough.
“Yes.”
“Let’s go.”
They crossed the city walls and headed north.
White snow gradually increased across the barren land. Snow began pouring down.
“There are no monsters.”
“Of course.”
They would all be with Hillan Cargill. It wasn’t good news. It meant Hillan was in that much danger.
Their destination was obvious, so finding the direction wasn’t hard.
They ran fast. Elves adapted with ease to almost any terrain, and a spirit sorceress with a high-grade water spirit would never fall behind.
They continued like that—for a long time. And several days.
Through the blizzard, the sound of battle reached them.
Countless silhouettes—monsters, magical beasts, demons—filled the distance.
Berje completely suppressed his presence.
He couldn’t see Hillan Cargill through the wall of monsters, but the familiar mana and the location of Armani’s Orb screamed that he was at the center.
“...There are too many. What do we do?”
“I have a plan.”
“As expected, Demon King. What is it?”
“I’ll break through, grab Hillan, and run.”
“...An amazing plan indeed.”
He ignored Granada’s sarcasm.
There was no real plan. The situation was too sudden, and all that mattered was saving Hillan Cargill somehow.
“Let’s start by drawing attention.”
He opened subspace and took out what he had obtained from Roger.
Twenty mana cannons gleamed brilliantly.
“...My gods. So that’s what you went to get…”
“Yes. Twenty cannons are far too few to wipe them out, but they’ll be enough to draw attention.”
They were not ordinary mana cannons. They were made by one of the top three artisans in Berfht, infused with the power of dimensional interference.
The only downside was that he used ordinary mana-stone shells instead of the corrupted versions.
If he used demonic energy, the destructive power would increase—but it would also raise suspicion.
“We’ll blast the front with the cannons, and through the opening, I’ll grab Hillan. You two keep controlling the can—”
Berje froze.
Hillan’s presence suddenly grew faint. His demonic energy deepened, and the scent of blood sharpened.
A warning rang violently in his head.
Something was going wrong.
“What’s wrong?”
Ernan’s question echoed emptily.
Berje was no longer there.
His entire body ignited in flames—
—as he took to the sky.
Like a Phoenix from legend.
* * *
He no longer cared about hiding. He lifted himself into the air.
Amid the countless horde, Hillan swayed, looking ready to die at any moment.
Dirty and stained among corpses—but alive.
That was enough.
‘I need to draw their eyes.’
So they would stop attacking Hillan.
Fwoosh—
He gathered flames and released them. They wrapped around him, exuding scorching heat, drawing all eyes.
He threw himself into the gap.
The flames traced a far longer trail than he had imagined.
Unlike demonic energy—which interference power suppressed—the Phoenix’s flames belonged to this world.
A Phoenix, equal to a dragon, was no trivial creature, and its power would grow endlessly if Berje honed it.
And though its nature differed slightly, flame was—
—what Berje handled best.
KWA-A-A-AANG—
A massive explosion erupted.
The world brightened. Heat swept in. And a moment later, the shockwave roared through.
Only a few high-grade demons withstood it fully.
‘Armand…’
Berje’s gaze shifted to the frost demon who had been cornering Hillan just moments ago.
A familiar face. One of Reina’s close aides he had seen a few times in the Frost Tower.
“...Demon King Berje?”
The man muttered blankly.
“No, that can’t be…”
He quickly shook his head.
‘…Damn.’
Berje finally realized why his face felt cold—his crude mask, which had no spells or engravings, had been half-destroyed by the explosion of flame.
“What nonsense are you spouting?”
Even if their faces were similar, no demon would believe he was Berje.
“Who are you?”
“A human.”
At his calm reply, Armand silently formed another ice spear from the melted remains.
There were many things he wanted to ask. Why his face was nearly identical to Berje’s, how he concealed his presence and reached this far, who he was.
But none of that mattered before the aura the man exuded.
‘Not a hero. But…’
More dangerous than most heroes.
‘He knows Hillan Cargill.’
If such a man stayed beside a hero who had killed two Demon Kings?
For the demon race, that was practically the worst scenario.
‘It doesn’t matter who he is. I just need to kill him.’
Hillan Cargill, and this human with Berje’s face.
“You die here today.”
Armand charged. Berje, whose entire body had been drained after unleashing that earlier burst of flame, clenched his teeth and forced fire to ignite again.
The monsters that had retreated bared their murderous intent once more.
At that instant—
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Dozens of explosions rocked the snowy plains simultaneously.
Thunderous blasts. Eruptions. Monsters shrieked.
Everything happened in an instant.
“...Mana cannons?”
Humans had already come this far?
Armand’s pupils widened. He couldn’t focus on the fight.
And that brief moment—
—was enough for flame and lightning to strike him from both sides.
The opening forced upon him allowed the intruders to slip away.
“Stop them!”
He shouted urgently, but the encirclement had already collapsed when the human fell from the sky like a meteor. Mana cannons continued bombarding, widening the gap further.
And above all—
Crunch—
Slice—
Mere monsters could never block the two.
“Armand!”
“Chase them!”
Armand quickly led the demons in pursuit.
“Lord Pale!”
“Scatter!”
“What about the mana cannons…?”
“I’ll destroy them.”
There was no time to collect them. But neither could he allow the humans to keep them—so burning them all was the only choice.
He hurled fire at the cannons. Flames met the shells inside, creating a magnificent explosion that once again hindered the demons’ pursuit.
“Roger will be sad about that.”
“His grief is irrelevant. Hillan Cargill.”
“Yes.”
“Stay focused. If you fall behind, there won’t be a second chance.”
“I’ll stake my life on it…”
Hillan gritted his teeth.
But he was exhausted. His injuries were far too severe for willpower alone to overcome.
He began slowing. The distance closed.
Ernan raised a wall of ice.
“Don’t try that nonsense!”
Armand hurled his spear. With a sharp screech that split the air, the flash shattered the ice wall and aimed for Hillan.
“Keep running!”
Berje blocked it. Clang—he massaged his numb arm as he swallowed a groan.
Blood dripped from the wound that had opened on his palm.
The enemy drew even closer.
Kwoooo—
Monsters appeared from another direction and blocked their path.
“I’ll handle it.”
Granada swung his sword. A troll’s head flew.
But it wasn’t just one or two monsters. Time stalled again. The distance shrank even further.
‘Damn it…!’
At this rate, they would be caught.
‘If it comes to it…’
Berje bit his lip.
Hillan Cargill was important. That was why he had come all the way here.
But no matter how valuable a chess piece Hillan was, he was not worth more than Berje’s own life.
Words were words. The priorities could not be reversed.
‘I’ll throw Hillan to them if I have to, and at least Ernan and Granada must survive.’
Especially Ernan…
At that moment—
Bwooooo—
A horn blared into his ears.
Dudududu—
White snow billowed. Thunderous hoofbeats shook the ground.
“...A knight order?”
“That’s the emblem of the Chernian family!”
The knights at the forefront radiated unmistakable might.
They charged as one, wrapped in aura.
It was like watching a masterpiece come alive.
Horses and riders—one hundred knights—breathed in perfect unison with their aura. It was breathtakingly beautiful.
KWA-A-A-AANG—
Screams and roars erupted. Flesh scattered—most of it belonging to monsters.
Kwoooo—
Neighhhh—
The monsters recoiled. Demons and magical beasts halted their pursuit.
“...We’re saved.”
Berje let out a breath of relief. Hillan Cargill, his tension breaking, fainted.
‘Lucky bastard.’
He wouldn’t even know he had nearly died.
“We must retreat.”
“We almost had them. Only needed to take their heads.”
At the mid-grade demon’s suggestion, Armand let out a hollow laugh.
“The banner of the Chernian Frontier Count and the White Frost Knight Order is here. He’s come in person.”
The barbarians clashed with the snowy-plain monsters the most, but second to them were the Frontier Count and his knights who guarded the Empire’s borders.
They could kill them. They could slaughter them all.
But—
Armand grit his teeth.
Eradicating a few barbarian tribes was one thing; provoking the Empire’s Frontier Count was something entirely different.
Killing a hero who tried to form an assault unit to climb the tower was one thing; killing the Empire’s Frontier Count was another.
No matter how many Demon Kings Hillan had killed, he did not belong to the Empire. The Empire had no reason to intervene. And if not the Empire, no one else would bring an army into the land of frost.
“...Retreat.”
Armand cursed himself for indulging his curiosity and conversing briefly with the hero who killed two Demon Kings.
If only he had gone all out from the start—
‘I could have killed them…!’
But it was already irreversible.
* * *
The demons began retreating.
Berje, staring blankly after them, happened to glance at Ernan. Humans were approaching in the distance.
‘If the Empire recognizes Ernan…?’
Instinctively, Berje shoved Ernan’s head into the snow.
“Hide. Right now!”