Chapter 145 : Voluntary Sucker
Chapter 145: Voluntary Sucker
“...Are you saying you are swearing on the First Demon Emperor and The Demon King’s Standard?”
『Y-Yes...! I’m saying it’s unfair!』
Jason Kokemundo pushed up his monocle.
Vivian Blunt was foolish, but she was neither foolish nor bold enough to habitually spout absurd lies while swearing on the First Demon Emperor and The Demon King’s Standard.
In the first place, there existed no Demon King anywhere who would speak falsehoods while swearing on the First Demon Emperor and The Demon King’s Standard.
The strange one was Berje, who had treated the sacred Standard like trash during the graduation ceremony.
If that was the case, then Vivian was not the culprit.
‘Another Demon King?’
Who could it be?
Simple-minded Ugar was thoroughly demon-like.
His lofty pride regarded relying on dwarven technology as a disgrace.
The haughty Reina rarely ever left the Empire.
Unlike Ugar or Vivian, she possessed an extraordinary mind and clearly distinguished between what should be done and what should not.
Therefore, it was neither of them.
‘Then.’
A natural process of elimination. Only one remained.
‘Berje, is it you?’
The Berje he knew was capable. The moment he descended, he knew what needed to be done, and even amid countless crises, he somehow survived.
Though he seemed dangerous, he ultimately steered things in a direction beneficial to himself.
There was no reason for such a man to provoke the Berfht Kingdom.
Under normal circumstances.
But what about now?
When the Empire was gnashing its teeth and crying out for the death of the Demon King of Dark Flame.
‘One who is cornered can do anything.’
No, he did not even need to be cornered.
‘One who would stop at nothing, by any means, for the sake of his goal.’
When they first met, Jason felt a faint sense of disgust.
Alongside a petty rebellious streak, he sensed an ambition that gazed beyond the horizon.
Berje Deias could do anything for the sake of his victory and survival. He would not hesitate to do things not limited to demon-kind acts.
That was why he had borrowed money from Jason and been involved in Draxon’s death.
Though it was a conjecture without evidence, Jason was certain.
‘That is why I thought he would be useful.’
As expected, it seemed that those of the same kind could not walk together.
‘If the culprit is Lord Berje, then there is only one objective.’
To incite the dwarves and spark a hero’s march. To pit them against the Empire, which was bloodshot in its pursuit of him, provoking clashes between the two—a classic case of using one enemy to strike another.
‘No, rather than that....’
A strategy to divert attention toward Vivian and scatter the gaze. The Empire would not idly stand by while the dwarves’ superior strategic materials flowed into other nations.
However.
‘You were wrong, Lord Berje.’
At least this time, the Empire’s attention would not turn that way. It was fortunate. Had things gone according to Berje’s intentions, there was no telling how the board might have been overturned again.
‘I must be even more cautious about this matter.’
He could not allow any further variables.
“I will believe you. At least this time, it does not seem to be something Lady Vivian carried out.”
『I told you it wasn’t me!』
『So then, now you’ll do something for me, right?』
“What do you mean?”
『It’s been proven that it wasn’t me, so you can take some kind of countermeasure, can’t you!』
“Hmm.”
It was a desperate cry. Given the situation, it was only natural for her to be desperate. But that was Vivian’s problem.
Jason calmly removed his glasses and brushed the dust clinging to the lenses.
“Unfortunately, it seems I cannot be of help.”
『...What?』
“As you suspect, I do have my own connections with humans, but they are humans in the literal sense.”
Dwarves were another matter entirely.
『No, even so, to the surrounding kingdoms....』
“Whether you did it or not, unfortunately, all the current evidence points to you. Turning that around is nearly impossible.”
“And considering the suspicion and hostile looks I would receive because of this incident, I do not wish to force myself even if it were possible.”
To Jason, Demon Kings fell broadly into three categories.
Useful, or useless. Or neither, but at least not harmful.
Vivian might become useful later, but at least for now, she was not.
Nor did she possess enough value to justify forcibly taking on the dwarves’ anger in her stead.
『What kind of bullshit nonsense is that!』
『I told you I didn’t do it! You believed me too!』
“What does it matter whether I believe you? In Arein, what matters is what Arein’s creations believe.”
Which meant this.
“Please, as a great Demon King, as the vanguard of the Demon Realm leading the conquest of dimensions, I pray that you will crush those who fell for incitement and fabrication and engrave the greatness of the Demon Realm upon them.”
It meant: stop bothering me and just go die.
---
“These are....”
Dwarven mana cannons.
Upon witnessing the splendid might of fifty mana cannons, Aman Katrash exclaimed in awe.
If all of these—each one worth an astronomical sum—were sold, he could not even begin to estimate how much they would fetch.
“You said there were a hundred more?”
“Yes. They were made by dwarves, but their functions are identical to those made by humans. If fired repeatedly, they will overheat badly, making rapid fire difficult, and some may even explode. Even so, they belong to the superior category. At least among those made by humans.”
“That is more than enough. With this, we will be able to persuade all the executives who oppose the current plan.”
It was regrettable that they could not sell them explicitly as dwarven-made, but that did not diminish the intrinsic value of the mana cannons themselves.
The problem lay elsewhere.
If mana cannons suddenly appeared out of nowhere, there would be no one who did not find it suspicious.
Fortunately, the Golden Moon Merchant Company did possess several workshops of its own and produced military supplies through them.
And the level of the mana cannons had been degraded enough that they did not appear to be made by dwarves.
“If dwarven mana cannons suddenly surface in the current situation, it will be obvious ruin for us, so this is actually good. We will be suspected of having ties with the Lust Demon King....”
“Lust? What are you talking about?”
“Did you not know? Recently, the Princess of the Dwarven Kingdom and forty-nine royal workshop craftsmen were kidnapped. And the Berfht Kingdom identified the culprit as the Lust Demon King.”
“...Lust?”
Berje, who had assumed that the dwarves’ anger would naturally be directed at himself, tilted his head.
“Why?”
“Because the kidnapped princess is Louise Berfht, the Second Princess of the Berfht Kingdom. As you know, she is the Lust Demon King’s....”
“He cut off the tail.”
But it was an excessive leap of logic to attribute it solely to that.
“Of course, but the biggest reason lies with the craftsmen.”
“How does that become proof of Lust?”
“Demon Kings generally do not borrow the power of humans or other races, do they? Especially, there has never been a case where dwarven craftsmen were singled out and kidnapped.”
“That is true.”
“That is why the dwarves initially believed it to be the work of humans, but traces of demonic energy were discovered at the kidnapping site, causing them to change direction.”
“And what does that have to do with Lust?”
“You may or may not know this, but the Lust Demon King is currently engaging in piracy around the pirate archipelago.”
“...Piracy?”
It was the first he had heard of it. Was a Demon King actually going around doing something like that?
The world truly was coming to an end.
“Yes. It has been observed that she is acting together with certain pirates.”
“No matter what, they’re humans—would they really work together with a Demon King?”
“Pirates do not discriminate between fire and water to begin with. Whether Demon King or human, if it benefits them, they will take it.”
“...So?”
“What such pirates value immensely are ships. Since they are practically their lifeline, that is only natural—but alongside ships, the top priority is mana cannons.”
“Mana cannons?”
“Do you know how naval battles are fought? In the past, ships would be lashed together and fought in close combat, but these days....”
“Installing mana cannons and firing them nonstop from long range, is that it?”
“Yes. That’s why mana cannons are extremely important to navies and pirates. Those bastards have tried more than once to kidnap dwarves because of that.”
“So among the Demon Kings, the only one likely to kidnap craftsmen is Lust, who is colluding with pirates? And the bad blood with Louise Berfht adds certainty to that?”
“Yes, exactly.”
Of course.
‘I didn’t think about it.’
“As expected, you’re quite capable.”
“No, anyone who knows you would think the same, Demon King.”
“Hm, regardless.”
Berje wore an intrigued expression.
From the perspective of the person involved, it was utter nonsense, but to those who knew nothing, it was a fairly convincing line of reasoning.
‘Not bad.’
That Vivian would pay the full price for what he had done. It was not his intention, but neither did he feel any need to actively clarify the matter.
No matter how enraged the dwarves became, after the tower’s relocation, it would not matter to him. Still, having someone else shoulder his mistake was always the right outcome.
Guilt toward Vivian? As if. Demon Kings were individualists by nature.
“Did you acquire all the materials I mentioned?”
“Only some of them so far....”
Aman trailed off, but the supplies he had gathered in such a short time were by no means few.
“I can’t tell you to take it slow, but there’s no need to rush excessively either. We can proceed with fabrication using what we have.”
“Still, for most things, it’s only a matter of time. There isn’t much that we truly can’t obtain....”
“But?”
“It seems some rare materials will take a bit of time to acquire.”
A golem was, by nature, the culmination of magi-engineering. Even if the issue of the most fundamental core had been resolved, that fact did not change.
A golem’s body required special materials far more sensitive to mana than ordinary weapons or armor, and all of them were rare and expensive.
“How long?”
“First, we dispatched the merchant company’s personnel across the entire continent. Fortunately, Zetoson’s abilities are outstanding, so it seems we can shorten the timeline more than expected.”
“Zetoson?”
“The Arkan merchant you sent us, Demon King.”
“Ah, right.”
That bastard who had dared to swindle a Demon King and a dwarven princess?
“Yes. They said he was a successful merchant in Arkan, and his abilities really are impressive.”
“Successful in Arkan?”
“Yes. He said so himself. He claimed to be a godfather who once dominated the Magic market.”
“...You believed that?”
“It was suspicious, but since he was talent you sent, Demon King, I let it pass. Whether it was true or not, it is a fact that he handled his work exceptionally well. Especially when it came to dealing with people and negotiations.”
Well, of course he did. He was a smooth-talking swindler.
“So?”
“I don’t know exactly what you intend to do, Demon King, but most of the materials you requested were similar to golem materials.”
That was only natural. The tower merely replaced the core—at its heart, it was still a golem. And one of a super-colossal scale never before created.
“So we judged it would be faster to procure them in Arkan.”
“That’s certainly true.”
If not the Berfht Kingdom, then Arkan was the place with the finest magi-engineering materials.
“No, wait a moment. So who did you send to Arkan?”
“Zetoson.”
“...You’re insane.”
He remembered that bastard as someone who had been half-buried socially in Arkan.
‘Hmm.’
A sense of crisis arose that he could not afford to just sit back and do nothing.
---
“Damn it. This mouth of mine—always running off.”
Why had he told a lie that would be exposed so quickly?
‘No, come to think of it, the merchant company is strange too. If someone boasts, shouldn’t they first check whether it’s true or not before assigning work?’
They said it was important business—so why was the handling so sloppy?
“Is something the matter?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
He was not alone. Including the ten merchants assigned by the merchant company, the laborers pulling the carts, and the escorts, the group numbered fifty in total.
Zetoson was their leader.
‘I have to secure them somehow....’
He could not afford to have all the trust he had built up vanish in one go. If it became known that everything he had said was empty bravado, it would truly be the end.
And conversely, if he overcame all these hardships and succeeded, he could soar even higher. He could make even more money!
‘There is a way.’
He just had to make his bravado no longer bravado.
He simply had to acquire everything the merchant company wanted.
‘Even if my credibility in Arkan’s market scene is rock bottom....’
Right now, he was no longer the old shopkeeper of a dilapidated store on the outskirts of the market, but a merchant of the rapidly rising Golden Moon Merchant Company from the Kingdom of Iasince.
The person in charge of this trading expedition.
Zetoson unfolded the list. The dozens of items on it were all expensive and rare.
Even in the magic market overflowing with magical materials, they were not common.
To procure them more smoothly, he would ultimately have to negotiate with mage towers to obtain stockpiled materials, or negotiate with merchant companies that supplied the mage towers.
‘To deal with mage towers, money isn’t what matters.’
Mage towers were swimming in money. The same went for the merchant companies supplying them.
What they desired were materials.
Materials worth researching—rarer, more exotic ones.
‘Does the Golden Moon Merchant Company have anything they would want?’
No.
But giving up just because there was nothing was not the mark of an excellent merchant.
‘A true merchant must sell magic lamps even at the northernmost edge of a snowfield where white nights occur.’
What mattered was the will to sell and buy, and the gift of gab.
‘Isn’t there something that looks convincing?’
Something mages would go crazy over if packaged appropriately.
‘Preferably by-products of demons or monsters.... From a Demon King would be even better.’
No answer came to him immediately.
For now, he resolved to roam the royal capital’s auction market and gather rare materials.
‘Please, just let there be one.’
Some blind sucker who did not know the true value of what he was selling.
And then.
『Demon King, I think you need to come quickly.』
“Why?”
『We received contact from the Demon King Vivian.』
“Vivian? Did we even have a relationship close enough for her to contact us separately?”
『Well, I’m not sure how to put this....』
“Say it.”
『...She’s asking you to save her.』
『She’s still sobbing in front of the communication device, telling us to hurry and bring you.』
“...?”
Somewhere on the continent, a voluntary sucker was walking straight into them.