Chapter 152 : Just So
Chapter 152: Just So
“...Are you saying Vivian Blunt is dead?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
The adjutant, Aina Sermyun, bowed her head.
Jason lifted his monocle. She knew all too well that it was a sign of irritation.
“Could you explain it accurately and in detail?”
“Rumours are spreading, centred around Arkan and Dormunt, that the Lust Demon King is dead.”
“Just rumours?”
“The Kingdom of Arkan presented Vivian Blunt’s horn as proof.”
“A horn....”
It was nothing less than the horn of a Demon King. The demonic power contained within it and the nature of that demonic power could never be forged. If a group obsessed with researching magic and demons guaranteed it, then it would not be false.
“There were only signs of assault units or a hero’s march, nothing more.”
“Yes. Because of that, a few assault units that had doubts were said to have advanced toward the Tower of Lust.”
“Don’t tell me the tower disappeared.”
“Yes. It was said to have vanished without leaving a trace. As far as I knew, in cases like this....”
“There was only one case—when a Demon King died and the tower was reverse-summoned to the Demon Realm. Yes, Vivian Blunt really was dead.”
Haha. Jason let out a hollow laugh.
In truth, Vivian Blunt’s death had been an expected outcome. However, this death was an anomaly that leapt far beyond the expected sequence.
Because he had received no signal whatsoever from any assault unit or hero’s march, Jason could not believe it.
Such a variable was never welcome.
“Who did it?”
“That has not yet been known. The same went for Arkan, which possessed Vivian Blunt’s horn.”
“They had the horn, but they didn’t know who killed her? Did that make any sense?”
“That was why I looked into it a bit. They hadn’t obtained it themselves, but had purchased it through a merchant company.”
“A merchant company?”
“The Golden Moon Merchant Company of the Kingdom of Iasince.”
“Golden Moon....”
The corner of Jason’s mouth twisted upward.
“Berje Deias, then.”
“Yes, Berje Deias.”
After lending Berje money, Jason had never lost sight of the flow.
And he had caught sight of one merchant company.
Golden Moon. A merchant company that had been drying up day by day suddenly received a massive investment one day and began to rise again. Moreover, its successor was someone who had participated in a hero’s march and returned.
Wasn’t it too much of a coincidence?
That timing was not very far removed from the date Jason had lent him the money.
“Did Berje Deias kill Vivian Blunt and cut off the horn to sell it?”
“No, that was unlikely. No matter how strong Berje was, as long as he was affected by interference power, there were limits. Unless he had poured all his Demonic Points for about a hundred years solely into reduction of interference power, Berje could not kill that Demon King in someone else’s tower.”
A tower was a Demon King’s main stronghold. A Demon King protected by their own tower, and a Demon King whose protection from their own tower was cut off while inside another’s tower.
The outcome was usually obvious at a glance.
“However, we couldn’t say he wasn’t involved at all. The fact that he obtained the horn meant there was definitely something to it.”
‘What on earth was it?’
At first, Jason had thought they had framed Vivian to divert attention.
But to just kill her outright? He couldn’t grasp what Berje wanted.
After pondering for a moment, Jason shook his head.
Whatever Berje was aiming for didn’t matter.
‘After Draxon, now Vivian as well.’
The problem was that he had crossed the line far too excessively.
“I’ll look into it further.”
“Yes, please do.”
“Then what about the merchant company?”
“Leave it be.”
“Was that really all right?”
“After the hero’s march ends, we’ll slowly swallow it whole. Chewing and swallowing was more profitable than smashing it apart.”
“Then yes, I’ll make the preparations accordingly.”
Aina slowly withdrew.
“The time until the hero’s march begins.”
That was the final grace it granted to you.
Without fail.
The teacup of black tea Jason had been holding shattered.
“It will turn out that way.”
* * *
After receiving Vivian’s oath of loyalty, the first thing done was the reorganisation of the tower that had merged into one.
From the 5th floor to the 10th. The number of floors, which had jumped up by double in one go, felt very simply like Vivian’s tower had been attached onto Berje’s tower.
Vivian’s tower occupied floors 1 through 5, and Berje’s tower occupied floors 6 through 10.
Berje had Vivian’s retainers and his own exchange greetings.
“I’m Kaede Zespine.”
“Lavinia.”
“I’m Ellena Hilderan.”
“...Demon King? Is this really correct?”
Vivian’s retainers were flustered by the princesses’ self-introductions.
There were princesses and elves, and even dwarves, and an entire floor was lined with mana cannons.
To Vivian’s retainers, who were nothing more than ordinary demons, it was a parade of things they couldn’t understand.
“I’m not a Demon King anymore. I’ve become a retainer of Berje Deias, and the same goes for you all.”
“...But.”
Vivian’s adjutant, the succubus Jenia, hesitated. Vivian grasped her chin and met her eyes.
“It’s regrettable to say this to those of you who trusted and followed me, but unfortunately, there are no choices.”
That was what it meant to be a retainer. When the one you served came to serve someone else, you had no choice but to follow along.
“Even so, I hope you’ll understand that this is also a beneficial choice for you.”
“...Understood.”
“Demon King—no, Lady Vivian, if you give the order, we will follow!”
Her retainers all bowed their heads at once.
Even with Vivian’s words, things couldn’t be smooth sailing from the start. Fundamentally, those who made up Berje’s tower were Arein beings such as humans, elves, and dwarves, and instinctively, they couldn’t help but feel repulsion toward demons as intruders.
This was a problem time would resolve.
“But if the tower increased to ten floors, the weight would....”
“Neither the exterior nor the weight changes. The inside is twisted.”
To begin with, a single floor was nearly 20 meters high, yet the tower’s exterior was only about 50 meters tall.
Theoretically, it was a height that should have held only two floors, yet a full five were crammed inside. It was thanks to the tower’s authority to twist space.
“Ah...!”
Brushing aside the anxious Roger, Berje rearranged the tower’s layout.
“We hadn’t even filled a five-floor tower, and now it’s doubled in an instant.”
First, Vivian’s retainers were divided into two groups. The demons were gathered together and given a single floor, while all the monsters and magical beasts were sent to Lavinia.
“Waaah!”
It wasn’t exactly a secret that she let out a cry of happiness at the number of monsters and magical beasts that had nearly doubled.
On the 2nd floor, materials were piled up together with the dwarves, and bridge construction began from the 1st floor. The 3rd floor was assigned to Lavinia and the monsters, the 4th floor to Vivian and the demons, the 5th floor to Ellena and Charlotte, and the 6th floor to Kaede and the elves.
As an extra, the dwarf princess who had gotten a taste for it after sparring with Kaede stayed together on the 6th floor and requested sparring every single day.
The 7th through 9th floors were left completely empty, but that was something that could be filled little by little in the future.
“Thanks to the ripples you cast, Demon King, no one doubts the fact that Vivian Blunt is dead. They’re obsessed with finding which hero killed her, and some are even asking where other byproducts besides the horn are.”
“The Golden Moon Merchant Company must be having a hard time.”
The first to appear with a Demon King’s byproducts had been the Golden Moon Merchant Company.
Naturally, all attention could only be drawn in that direction.
Rather than suspecting that the Golden Moon Merchant Company itself had killed Vivian, there were plenty who were trying to dig out which hero had sold them the item.
And this situation was not particularly welcome for Berje.
“The transaction with the Mage Tower concluded smoothly, and they said they would now be able to supply all the necessary materials, but....”
“But?”
“It’s been reported that they’re continuously demanding additional components and purchasing various supplies from the Golden Moon Merchant Company. In particular, since what they’re buying are golem materials, rumors are spreading that the merchant company might be producing golems themselves.”
“So?”
“For now, they’re breaking out in a cold sweat trying to persuade the merchant company’s executives.”
Aman was the Vice-Head of the Golden Moon Merchant Company who held real authority after his father granted him full power. However, no matter how much authority one held, a merchant company wasn’t something that could be run entirely by personal fiat.
Inevitably, one had to move forward through consensus with the executives—but when it came to matters involving Berje, that simply wasn’t possible.
After all, it wasn’t as if he could say that he was a hound of a Demon King, gathering supplies for a Demon King.
Because of that, the solution he chose was an “unknown trading partner” and the very tangible compensation of mana cannons.
No matter who the counterpart was, if money could be made, selling one’s liver and gallbladder alike was the essence of a merchant, so it was entirely feasible.
However, with public attention now focused on them and a Demon King’s horn—something even they hadn’t known about—suddenly surfacing, it was no longer something that could simply be brushed aside.
“They’re making a fuss every day, demanding that we clearly explain how we obtained the Lust Demon King’s horn and exactly who the trading partner is that’s giving us mana cannons in exchange for golem materials.”
“What about putting Hillan Cargill forward?”
“That’s exactly how we’ve been placating them.”
“By saying Hillan Cargill killed her?”
“No.”
After saving Ernan, Hillan had remained in Hilderan continuously. There were plenty who had seen him there, so it simply couldn’t hold up that he had destroyed the Tower of Lust during that time.
“Then?”
“They took advantage of the fact that Hillan Cargill is an investor in the merchant company.”
An investor wanted secrecy maintained. The moment the executives heard that Hillan Cargill was involved, they had no choice but to keep their mouths shut, even as dissatisfaction brewed.
“Then that settles it.”
There would be plenty of talk, but human nature didn’t go anywhere. It might be noisy now, but it would soon quiet down.
“It’s not settled. Each nation is also raising an uproar.”
“...What a headache.”
A Demon King’s tower had suddenly vanished, and Demon King byproducts had appeared—of course attention would be drawn.
The problem was that it was hardly welcome, and that excessive attention could lead to sanctions being imposed on the merchant company.
“Above all, the problem is the Kingdom of Iasince.”
No matter how much other countries raised hell, they were still other countries. At the very least, they couldn’t officially interfere excessively with a foreign merchant company.
But what if it was the Kingdom of Iasince, where the merchant company itself was based?
“Yes. They said an official document came down demanding that if the items were purchased through someone, the exact route be clearly disclosed.”
It was called an official document, but it was a threat.
“...I’ll kidnap the princess of Iasince.”
“Yes? Are you heading out now, after just succeeding with the experiment?”
The experiment concerned whether the bridge could reliably merge with the tower.
The dwarves hastily created an artifact in a single day and installed it on the tower.
And when Berje touched it, the exact same text as that of the Ghost of Mana appeared.
At that moment, everyone became certain. This operation would succeed.
“If a royal with succession rights is kidnapped, they won’t have the leisure to worry about a mere merchant company, will they?”
“There’s the problem that all that anger will be directed squarely at us.”
“Once we move the tower, it’ll all become empty shouting.”
“The bridge has only just begun construction.”
“Even if preparations for the hero’s march start now, it’ll take several months at minimum. Roger guaranteed that as long as there were sufficient materials, he could finish it in time.”
It was by no means easy, but there were as many as fifty of the finest master craftsmen of the Dwarven Kingdom. With Arkan’s golem artisans on top of that, it wasn’t completely impossible.
“Furthermore, we need as many Demonic Points as possible. We don’t know how many Demonic Points it’ll take to merge the tower and the bridge and activate the tower. The more rage there is, the better.”
“That’s true, but is there really a need to make the schedule even tighter?”
The Empire was already preparing a hero’s march. If Iasince joined in, the timing of the hero’s march could be accelerated even further.
“No, that won’t be the case, so don’t worry.”
“It won’t?”
“Yes. I can be sure of it.”
The Empire would never cooperate with other nations.
When it came to searching for a tower itself, that could happen. Sharing the blood one would shed with other nations to reduce losses was perfectly ordinary.
However, once the tower was found and it came to bringing that tower down, the Empire would act alone without exception.
They had to monopolize the honor and the wealth—everything.
That was the Empire before regression, and the Empire hadn’t changed even after regression.
Unless something truly extraordinary happened.
“In that case, that’s a relief, but diverting attention with just one person is too little for an incident of this scale.”
“Then it doesn’t have to be just one.”
His steps were light, as though he were simply going out for a walk.
A few days later.
『The 1st Princess of the Kingdom of Iasince, Natalia Iasince, along with the 2nd Princess, 3rd Princess, and 4th Princess, have been kidnapped!』
『Traces of black flames left at the scene—was the culprit the Demon King of Dark Flame?』
With the unprecedented incident of four princesses being kidnapped at once, the Kingdom of Iasince was thrown into complete chaos.
* * *
While the continent was reeling because of Berje, the Empire was calmly preparing the hero’s march.
And it was under the Emperor’s direct leadership.
Martin Zespine closed the door with a hardened expression. Blood trickled from his crushed lips.
“Your Highness.”
His adjutant bowed his head.
“Did things not go well with His Majesty?”
“How should I even put this.”
If it were Martin Zespine’s personal opinion, things had gone terribly wrong. But from the standpoint of an imperial prince, there wasn’t particularly anything to lose.
“His Majesty has completely changed direction. He’s excluded the imperial family.”
Originally, the Empire had treated this matter as something close to a contest of imperial succession among the royals.
The one who achieved the greater merit would receive greater fame and power.
But the Emperor had suddenly changed his words.
“His Majesty is directly involving himself, forming the hero force and planning the hero’s march. To decisively finish off the Demon King of Dark Flame.”
He wouldn’t tolerate even the variable of conflict among the princes.
“...That’s.”
It was an extremely hardline stance. One could even feel a desperate determination to kill the Demon King of Dark Flame no matter what.
It wasn’t strange for the ruler of a nation to be enraged after having his children kidnapped.
But what mattered was that he hadn’t been like this until now.
Wasn’t he the same Emperor who, until recently, had said this was an extension of the struggle for imperial succession?
It was the moment Martin’s plan—to personally step in and protect Kaede at all costs—was completely thrown into disarray.
“There’s something. Something that changed His Majesty’s intentions.”
“I’ll look into it. Still, to be honest, I think it’s a relief.”
“A relief?”
“The Demon King of Dark Flame is far too dangerous.”
Through tactics of hiding the tower and intercepting from the mountains, he had devoured countless heroes and people.
And unlike other Demon Kings, he didn’t hesitate to kidnap royals with succession rights.
“He’s completely throwing into disarray the relationship we’ve built with Demon Kings so far. Someone like that should disappear as soon as possible, for the sake of the Empire.”
Everything Berje had done—none of it resolved from humanity’s perspective—was heightening their sense of alarm.
“That may be so, but....”
Having realized that his younger sibling had become a hound of a Demon King, Martin couldn’t readily agree.
“Of course, it’s regrettable that you’ve lost the opportunity to earn merit, but it’s the same for the other imperial royals as well, and since Your Highness has already found the tower, I think that’s a good thing.”
“Yes, that’s true.”
If only he hadn’t found the tower, hadn’t known that Kaede was a Dark Knight, and hadn’t handed over the Token of the Imperial Palace Archive, it would have been better.
‘Or should I have forced the issue and captured her when she came to the imperial capital?’
No— the Demon King must have had his own countermeasures, which was why he had revealed himself so boldly.
‘And he took the token back as well.’
Although he could no longer enter the archive, the token—being a mark of succession rights—had been returned to Martin. Only for it to be taken away again.
Martin smiled bitterly.
“Since His Majesty has issued direct orders, the hero’s march may proceed faster than expected. Keep a close watch on how that force is formed.”
“Yes.”
Martin decided to relay this information to the Demon King first.
* * *
『I heard the Lust Demon King became one of the Demon King’s retainers.』
『You caused quite a stir in Iasince too, didn’t you? Four of them, no less.』
Fast.
After kidnapping the princesses of Iasince, roughly tossing them to Kaede, and returning, Berje hadn’t had much time pass before he received a communication from Ernan.
It seemed Kaede had already told her everything in the meantime.
『You can even make a Demon King into a retainer?』
“A Demon King is still part of the demon race in the end.”
『If it’s a Succubus Queen, she must be very pretty. The princesses too.』
“She’s not pretty.”
『That answer was way too fast, wasn’t it?』
“It’s the truth.”
『...What is that supposed to mean?』
“...Who knows.”
Why had he answered like that? He didn’t know. Their eyes had met, and a chill had run down his spine. It was like she was smiling, but not really smiling.
Maybe that was why it had slipped out instinctively.
By common sense, there was no way a Succubus Queen wouldn’t be beautiful. The same went for princesses.
『Congratulations. The tower’s fighting strength has increased even more.』
“That’s right.”
『But did you know this?』
“What?”
『I’m not an ordinary princess. I’m the Crown Princess of Hilderan.』
『A contractor bonded with a superior spirit, and a fairly outstanding spirit sorceress who will soon contract with a Spirit King.』
『The Lust you brought along has lost her tower, so she can no longer be called a Demon King.』
“...Why are you suddenly saying that?”
『...Who knows.』
『Just so.』
Amethyst eyes of unfathomable depth stared into Berje’s eyes until the communication was cut off.