Chapter 134 : The First
Chapter 134: The First
When he thought about it, it was an extremely simple problem.
If they had come to retrieve the princess, then he simply had to return the princess.
If they wanted to save the Crown Princess of Hilderan.
Then all he had to do was release the Crown Princess of Hilderan.
“If you return to the kingdom, there will be no reason for the Kingdom of Hilderan to cling to my neck.”
Of course, the 13th Princess still existed and had been humiliated, so it would not disappear completely.
However, he could deal them a major blow to their momentum.
To them, the 13th Princess was a useless sickly person, so if they saved the Crown Princess, rather than escalating matters further, they would watch the Empire’s hero’s march and respond afterward.
In other words, he could absolutely prevent the worst-case scenario of facing two nations at once.
If luck was on his side, he could even exclude Hilderan altogether.
“...You’re sending me back to the kingdom?”
“Yes. That said, I can’t just let you go, so it will be staged as a rescue using Hillan....”
Berje frowned. Something about the atmosphere was strange.
His eyes met Ernan’s. The ever-present smiling eyes were gone. The smile at the corners of her mouth had also disappeared.
This was almost—
‘Just like when we first met....’
It was Ernan Hilderan. The expression she had worn while gazing at the moonlight in the annex palace of the 13th Princess.
From the moment she discovered Berje, she had been smiling, but that expression was not disappearing.
‘What is it?’
What was the problem?
“Aren’t you happy about returning to the kingdom?”
He could not understand.
No matter how sincerely she had helped Berje while calling herself one of the Four Heavenly Kings, she was ultimately human. A princess of a kingdom.
If she was not going to die in the tower, she would have to return someday.
“I helped the Demon King and became one of the Four Heavenly Kings. You asked me to.”
“You did.”
He had not asked her to become one of the Four Heavenly Kings. But it was true that he had asked her to sow chaos for Hillan Cargill on his behalf. Thanks to that, he had captured Hillan Cargill relatively easily.
“I persuaded Kaede, and I told you about the nobles’ secret vaults.”
“You did.”
“Although I couldn’t stop the tower’s location from being leaked, I helped with Lord Daphne....”
“You helped kill him. I asked you for his death, and you carried it out perfectly. I am grateful.”
Beyond that, he had received countless small forms of assistance. At first, he had never imagined receiving this much help from a kidnapped princess, but now she was an indispensable talent of the tower.
“And you’re still telling me to go back?”
“Yes.”
But that did not—
It did not become a reason not to send her back to Hilderan.
Separate from his gratitude toward her, Berje’s priorities were always the tower and himself.
If he did not send Ernan away, he would die. But if he sent her back, a path to survival might open.
If that was the case, then he had to choose the latter, no matter what.
“It’s also for your sake.”
And from the beginning, this method was also the right one for Ernan.
Rather than sinking together while staying in the tower, it was better for her to return to the kingdom in the form of salvation and reclaim her proper place.
“...I’ve heard the words ‘for your sake’ countless times in the kingdom. And not once were they truly just for me.”
“There are things you promised me, Lord Demon King. That you would grant my requests.”
“That is true, but....”
“I’ll use them now. If one isn’t enough, I’ll use all of them that I saved up.”
Clear and deliberate.
“I.”
She emphasised it, letter by letter.
“I won’t go back.”
* * *
...What?
Why did it turn out like this?
The meeting ended. Ernan fled from the 5th floor down to the 4th floor, and Berje adjourned the meeting.
It had been an idea he came up with on the spot, but it was an appropriate solution.
That was why he had thought Ernan would accept it easily.
No matter how cooperative she had been with him, and no matter how sincere she had been about being one of the Four Heavenly Kings, she was human. Naturally, being in a human kingdom was better than being in the Demon King’s Tower.
“Just ignoring her opinion and sending her away anyway is... not going to work, is it.”
“Obviously.”
Ernan Hilderan was more closely connected to this tower than any other human. If she harbored ill will and revealed everything about the tower?
Berje’s future would not merely turn pitch-black, but sink into jet-black darkness.
Those who were once on the same side and then turned away were the most frightening.
No matter what, he had to persuade her and make her return to the kingdom of her own volition.
“You kept a human princess too close.”
“I can’t deny that. But if it hadn’t been for her help, I wouldn’t have made it this far to begin with. You were half-accepting her as a member of the tower yourself, weren’t you?”
“That is true.”
Because he was trying to act differently from before his regression, there were not just one or two things that became tangled, and there had been several dangerous situations.
If Ernan hadn’t been there, things would have been worse than they were now.
No—he might already have been dead.
“Even so. Why in the world would a human princess refuse to return to her own kingdom?”
By Gordon’s common sense, it was impossible to understand.
“Then it makes sense to you that she helped the Demon King and called herself one of the Four Heavenly Kings?”
“...That also doesn’t.”
“Come up with a good method. Isn’t an adjutant supposed to advise and assist the Demon King?”
“No matter how you look at it, it’s far beyond common sense....”
To Gordon, the princess named Ernan Hilderan was an existence he could never understand even if he spent his entire life with her.
“...Then let’s put Hilderan aside for the moment. What about Zespine? Even if the 3rd Prince delays, they’ll come eventually. Is there a way to stop them?”
It wasn’t only Hilderan that was aiming for the tower.
“There is.”
“There is?”
“They’re divided anyway.”
The 1st Prince, the 2nd Prince, the 1st Princess, and the 3rd Prince.
The 3rd Prince had said he would use the Empire’s hero’s march as an extension of the struggle for succession to the throne.
It was proof that the Empire was arrogantly underestimating Berje, but that only made things easier.
“They’re a butcher nation where siblings fire mana cannons at each other and constantly carry out assassinations. This incident, too, is more likely to make them bare their fangs at one another rather than at you, Lord Demon King.”
“So you’re saying we should divide them further and make them fight.”
“Yes. Since the 3rd Prince has joined hands with Your Majesty, the number of possible moves increases even more. Of course, humans can never be trusted completely.”
“I understand.”
The 3rd Prince was still a prince in the end, and he would prioritize the Empire.
“Send word to the Golden Moon Merchant Company and tell them to pass along information about the Empire, about the imperial family. Leave nothing out, even the smallest things. We need to exploit everything we can and widen the rift between them even more.”
“Yes.”
“And as for the 3rd Prince, I’ll deal with him separately....”
Knock, knock—
Someone knocked on the door. When he told them to come in, Ellena peeked her head inside.
“...Lord Demon King. May I speak with you for a moment?”
“What is it?”
“It’s about my sister.”
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
At Berje’s glance, Gordon returned to his office. Ellena sat down in a chair.
“Tell me. Why does Ernan hate the idea of returning to the kingdom?”
He had noticed signs of it a few times before. But he hadn’t expected such an outright refusal.
Ellena, who still couldn’t regulate the mana in her body on her own, had to remain in the tower at least for the sake of her life, but Ernan wasn’t the same.
“You know the magic called ‘Child of the World Tree,’ right?”
“I do.”
“That was the beginning.”
Ellena continued speaking.
* * *
The King of Hilderan was chasing past glory.
Hilderan in the days when it was an empire, when it ruled the continent.
A single powerful individual could overturn a battlefield. Because of that, the King of Hilderan obsessed over becoming a stronger king.
Even if it wasn’t himself, he wanted his children to dominate everyone and lead the kingdom’s restoration.
And so, he engraved the magic called ‘Child of the World Tree’ upon his wife and his children.
Countless mothers and children died. But even among the innumerable corpses, a fruit was borne.
That fruit was Ernan Hilderan.
The king’s obsession, and the nobles’ obsession that stemmed from the king, was only natural.
If it had merely been the level of cherishing her, it would have been better.
To make the fruit born with exceptional talent even sweeter, Hilderan poured in all of its efforts.
From the moment she was born until now, there had never once been something like freedom for Ernan.
Behind the fact that she summoned a mid-grade spirit at a young age and was foretold a more brilliant future, there had been such relentless exploitation.
“And that exploitation wasn’t limited to my sister alone.”
There were not just one or two royals born through the magic of the Child of the World Tree. Although many more had died, they were born nonetheless.
Some became even more fragile due to side effects, but some obtained power befitting the purpose of the magic.
Yes, Ernan was so overwhelmingly exceptional that most were overshadowed, but there were royals who had been born with a certain degree of power.
They, too, went through processes similar to Ernan’s.
“But my sister’s talent was overwhelming.”
Naturally, their father’s favoritism had been blatant as well.
“They... my sister.”
“They envied and resented her.”
“Yes.”
It was an obvious story. They went through the same process and endured the same exploitation, yet one alone soared ahead.
She received more praise, more affection, and was constantly compared to the others.
It was only natural that they wouldn’t view each other kindly.
And so, Ernan Hilderan gradually became isolated amid envy and jealousy. The foolish king paid no attention to such things at all.
If he had been someone who treated his children as children to begin with, he would never have done something as insane as the Child of the World Tree.
“And the only one who approached her was you, right?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
So that was why she had been in the annex palace of the 13th Princess?
Anyway, to sum it up.
The human named Ernan Hilderan—
Above her, she received overwhelming expectations and obsession from the king and the nobles.
Below her, she was subjected to envy and jealousy from her siblings and those associated with them.
She was a princess who was physically and mentally exploited day after day.
“I don’t understand.”
“What part of it don’t you understand?”
“If weaklings envy and resent you, shouldn’t you just kill them all?”
“...Uh. For us humans....”
“I know. It was a joke.”
“...Yes?”
Ellena blinked, her eyes wide.
“So in the end, it’s a simple problem.”
“Simple?”
“Yes.”
Berje nodded.
“If the king and nobles pressure and obsess over her, then she just needs to stand in a position where they can’t do that.”
“If her siblings envy and resent her, then she just needs to become an existence that makes envy itself impossible.”
Ellena tilted her head, unable to grasp his words.
“...Does something like that exist?”
“Not many. There’s only one seat per country.”
“...Don’t tell me.”
“Yes, that’s exactly what you’re thinking.”
So that no one would dare to be insolent.
Ernan Hilderan—
“Isn’t making her the king a solution to everything?”
“Uh....”
‘A Spirit Sorceress of Darkness, one of the Four Heavenly Kings who serves the Demon King, has come to inherit the throne.’
Why was it?
In Ellena Hilderan’s mind, the image of her eldest sister wearing a mask and going to see their father surfaced.
Surely something like that wouldn’t really happen.
* * *
Ernan crouched atop a hill she had created herself. Gazing at the gently flowing artificial river, she flicked a small pebble.
- You said you’d go back someday.
“I did.”
- Then why are you like this? Is it because of the Demon King after all....
“Aren’t you tired of this?”
- Then what? You’re human in the end, and you can’t live forever in the Demon King’s Tower.
- Since you’re the Crown Princess, you have to return to the kingdom.
“I know. It’s not that I won’t go back.”
Yes, someday, she would return.
She had said the same thing to Nairuniel before, and there hadn’t been a shred of falsehood in it.
“I also know that I’m at fault in this incident.”
If she had acted sooner, she might have been able to prevent the tower’s location from being leaked.
No, if she had known that fact, she would have done something about the forces of the Kingdom of Korzen, one way or another.
- So what is it?
“What do you mean?”
- There must be something. The condition under which you think you can return.
“...A king.”
- You’re already one of the Four Heavenly Kings.
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
- Wasn’t it?
“Being one of the Four Heavenly Kings is nice, of course. But I’m talking about spirits.”
- ...The Spirit King?
- Was your goal to summon a king?
Ernan silently nodded.
“It’s the dream of all spirit sorcerers.”
- But it’s a realm where one appears maybe once every thousand years.
- Well, it doesn’t seem impossible for you. You’re 24, right?
“Yes.”
She was already 24—no, since she had formed the contract last year, she had been able to summon Nairuniel, a high-grade spirit, at the age of 23.
That was, quite literally, unprecedented.
There had never been such a case before, and there would never be one again. A child born with tremendous talent after pushing through the ordeal of the Child of the World Tree had encountered the wall called the Demon King’s Tower, where mana was sparse, shattered it, and achieved explosive growth.
If anyone in this dimension called Arein were to contract with a Spirit King, it would unconditionally be Ernan Hilderan.
Nairuniel could say that with certainty.
- So what were you planning to do after summoning the Spirit King?
“I was going to destroy the kingdom.”
- ...Huh?
“I’m joking. Once you reach that level, you don’t need to be bound to the kingdom anymore, right?”
Ernan smiled softly.
- But if that’s the case, doesn’t it not have to be the Demon King’s Tower specifically?
- Of course, not being able to watch your lovey-dovey moments with the Demon King is a little—no, quite a lot—regrettable, but....
“Wipe your drool.”
- Mmm. Anyway, you don’t need to be tied to the tower. Before, it was because you couldn’t escape the royal palace, but now....
“That’s right. Before, it was like that.”
- So it’s not like that now?
“Now.... Just a little.”
It might have sounded like nonsense, but she had grown attached to the tower.
The dwarf hero who constantly shouted about mana cannons and maximum firepower.
The strange elf who dropped by from time to time.
The princess of the Magitech Kingdom who made chimeras.
Her younger sister, who was gradually regaining her health and vitality.
The Dark Elf who looked strict but was full of a strong sense of duty.
And the Demon King, frightening, not always perfect, sometimes showing gaps, and the one who had reached out a hand to her when she was shrouded in gloom.
She had come to like them.
Perhaps because it was the joy of human relationships she had never once felt in the kingdom, in the royal castle.
She didn’t want to leave the tower.
That was all. This tower, which to someone else was a den of evil, had become a meaningful place to her, at least.
She had to be hostile toward heroes and humans?
What did it matter? Humans fought among themselves anyway. The king’s goal, in the end, was for her to rebuild the Hilderan Empire.
A future stained with the blood of her own kind had been foretold to her from the very beginning.
In that case, pretending to be out of her mind while playing the role of one of the Four Heavenly Kings in the Demon King’s Tower was a hundred times better.
“Especially the Lord Demon King....”
“Me?”
“...When did you get here?”
Ernan hurriedly shut her mouth. At some point, Berje was calmly sitting beside her.
“At the Demon King Military Academy, the very first thing, and the thing you learn most perfectly, is stealth.”
“To kidnap me?”
“Since you’re royalty, strictly speaking, that’s not wrong.”
Berje sat down beside her without a fuss.
“You’re human.”
“But I’m one of the Four Heavenly Kings.”
“You’re not even my retainer.”
“Do you need more proof?”
“No amount of proof is ever enough.”
“Do you want me to return to Hilderan that badly?”
She met Berje’s gaze. Her expression was fairly resolute.
“If you don’t go, the tower will fall. I don’t yet have the power to stop them.”
“...I’m here.”
“If there were hundreds of you, maybe. Don’t be ridiculous.”
“There’s no guarantee that Hilderan will withdraw just because I go. You’ve crushed Hilderan’s pride.”
“That’s what you’re there to stop.”
“So you’re going to remove me from the Four Heavenly Kings, expel me from the tower, and then put it all on me again?”
“Who said I was removing you?”
“....”
“You’re already a member of the tower. That doesn’t change no matter where you go. The same goes for the Four Heavenly Kings. Once a Four Heavenly King, always a Four Heavenly King.”
“Really?”
“What, did you think I’d take it away? You were the one who made it in the first place.”
“You don’t like things like that. I thought you’d erase it the moment I disappeared.”
“....”
He couldn’t bring himself to deny it. He had thought he would someday. But not now.
“The Lord Demon King I know isn’t someone who’d say such cringeworthy lines. If you do, there has to be a reason. You heard our whole conversation, right?”
“I did.”
“The Spirit King too?”
“I won’t deny it.”
“Did that influence you?”
“You could say it did. Very much so.”
“You’re really honest.”
That really was like the Demon King. Ernan let out a small laugh.
Berje calmly took out a necklace.
“What is it?”
“A communication necklace.”
It was a necklace he had told Roger to make for the elves who would be leaving the tower on missions.
“If you go back and it gets hard, you can come back again. I’ll accept you anytime.”
“Isn’t that a bit strange for something the Demon King would say to a princess?”
“Among the humans I’ve met, there was no one stranger than you. A country with someone like that as its ruler sounds fun too.”
“What do you mean?”
“I heard the story roughly. There’s a simple way to solve all of that. Become queen. So that no one can give you orders.”
“Can you make that happen?”
A very brief silence. In that moment, Ernan understood everything Berje meant to say.
“Hillan Cargill is my retainer.”
As one half of the tandem leading the search parties together with Daphne, his fame had risen even higher than before.
The national hero of Hilderan. His reputation itself was tremendous power.
“It’ll be even more so if he rescues you. If Hillan Cargill and you join forces, no one will be able to treat you lightly.”
“But that’s only up to that point, right? The rest I’ll have to handle myself.”
“As expected, you’re quick to understand. That’s good.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You don’t necessarily have to become king. As long as you have enough power that even the king can’t touch you.”
How was that any different from being king. Especially when the one in question was the Crown Princess already slated to become the next monarch.
“Making you like that and then having you come back to the tower would be fun too.”
“You’d like it even more if I brought the Spirit King with me, wouldn’t you?”
“Probably.”
Ernan let out a small laugh. Her gloomy mood lightened, if only a little.
She had been stubborn, but she knew it too. If she didn’t go, this enjoyable place would disappear.
“Next time you kidnap a princess, please make it one who’s big and has outstanding physical abilities.”
“Why?”
“Isn’t the last one left the Giant of Hell?”
“No, I was asking why you think I’m going to kidnap a princess.”
“Aren’t you?”
“...That’s true, but.”
A princess was better than a prince, after all.
“What about your sister?”
“Ellena is a mage.”
“There’s no need for her to be a giant.”
“Mm, that’s true too.”
Ernan nodded.
“Still, you have to stay true to the basics for now. Even if you can’t save them later, you shouldn’t give up already.”
“...I’ll try.”
“Then that’s good. I’ll grant the Demon King’s request as well.”
She stood up from her seat and brushed the dirt off her hips.
“I’ll go. If I don’t, this tower I like might disappear.”
“You made a good decision.”
“But.”
Ernan approached briskly, smiling with her eyes.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m the first.”
“What?”
Under the light of the mana lamp embedded in the ceiling, her eyes sparkled.
Her excited breath whispered softly.
“You were the first to reach out your hand.”
“And I was the first to grab your hand.”
The first princess.
In other words—
“If you forget me, I won’t let you off.”
“Promises exist to be kept.”
Do you understand?
Eyes filled with desire gazed steadily at Berje.
Before he realised it, Berje’s head nodded.