Lies
"Big sis, did you really meet the Demon King?"
"Yep."
"How was he? What kind of bastard is he?"
"Good."
"...His looks aren't important, big sis."
"You too. Good."
"Ah, thank you, but still—"
After returning to Hotenwalk, Acan's forces inspected their losses and took time to reorganize.
Kain relieved his exhaustion with a meal and a bath, then went to find Lavinia's room.
The Commander of the Azure Meteor Mage Corps and the Captain of the White Wolf Knights were with him.
The Demon King. A lifelong nemesis they had believed they could never coexist with, yet somehow had reached a strange form of coexistence.
But that coexistence arose from humanity's supremacy. The superiority complex that the Demon King is no longer absolute, that he can be used, that he can be dealt with whenever necessary—that was what created the current situation.
Because of that, a Demon King who hid his tower could not be allowed to exist. If he did, they had to find him no matter what it took.
The Fifth Prince had come to Hotenwalk prepared to spend months—perhaps even years—searching.
Yet those months unraveled in mere days.
Because Lavinia had already met the Demon King.
If she had been kidnapped or killed, that would have been a problem—but she stood alive before them all.
To say he wasn't pleased would be a lie.
"What race did he look like?"
The Demon King's race mattered. Beastfolk had their ways, Titans had theirs, Frost Demons had theirs.
Depending on the race, a Demon King's nature and the atmosphere of his tower changed, and therefore the proper response changed as well.
"If he took the fallen orc, does that mean he's an orc? No... orcs aren't technically demons..."
Lavinia shook her head.
"You don't know?"
"First time."
"You saw a demon species for the first time...?"
Lavinia was like an uncontrollable bomb. She had chased demons, demonic beasts, and monsters across the entire continent. Acan had suffered many headaches because of her, but on the flip side, no other human had encountered as many demons as she had.
Perhaps only a few old, battle-scarred veteran heroes could compare.
"Don't tell me it's like the Demon King of Lies, whose identity couldn't be known at all?"
"There's no way there would be another like the Demon King of Lies. Besides, the Hero Guild gave him the name Flamebrand. If he uses fire, wouldn't that make him either a dark elf or a demonkin?"
The Azure Meteor Mage Commander spoke.
The former was a race capable of using fire magic, and the latter had many individuals born with the Authority of Fire.
"Ears normal."
"Then he isn't demonkin?"
"Your premise is wrong. If he were demonkin, there's no way big sis wouldn't recognize him."
"That's true."
"But he did have the Authority of Fire, correct?"
"That he uses fire is already widely known."
"But no one has actually seen him, have they?"
Though he had become infamous for kidnapping the three princesses and thwarting the Hero campaign, no one had actually faced the Demon King of Ergest.
"Information about a Demon King isn't only gained through direct confrontation."
Kain didn't deny knowing methods. But whether they could be trusted—he always doubted.
"Black fire."
"So it was fire?"
"Demonic fire."
But if it was Lavinia's testimony—she had seen it with her own eyes—he could believe it.
"Do you remember where you spotted the Demon King?"
Kain unfolded a map. It was a map of Ergest, though most of it was blank. The region was forbidden and poorly explored—but a blank map was still better than none.
"No."
"Then which direction did you travel?"
"Forward."
"Then were there no notable features about him? Something unusual?"
"Human."
"Demons shaped like humans are common. That's hardly a feature. Big sis, can you narrow it down a bit more?"
Lavinia tilted her head in thought.
"Black hair?"
"And?"
"Black eyes."
"Anything else?"
"Cher..."
"Cher? Isn't that your favorite chimera?"
The one she rode around on in the snowy mountains.
"Yep."
"What about Cher?"
"Scared."
"Scared?"
"A lot."
The knight, the mage, and the prince all let out hollow laughs.
Of course a chimera would be terrified of a Demon King. That was no help at all.
Kain realized the conversation was going nowhere and shifted topics.
"How did you run into the orcs?"
"Dogs."
"Ah, the hellhounds."
Chimeras Lavinia had made herself—hunting dogs sensitive to demonic energy that tracked it relentlessly.
It was the biggest reason the King of Acan had decided to send her to find the Demon King's tower.
"If there was a battle with the Demon King, there should be traces of demonic energy. We can use the hounds to track it and then search the area for the tower—"
"Dead."
"...What?"
"All of them. The orcs."
Good grief.
Acan's plan had fallen apart from the very start.
***
In the dwarven royal capital, an unexpected festival was underway.
"Hillen Cargill!"
"Hillen Cargill!"
Fireworks exploded and flower petals fluttered through the air.
Dwarves, drunk on beer, roared with cheers.
Hillen Cargill waved from atop a massive mechanical vehicle rolling through the crowd. His wave only amplified the cheers.
"The hero of the kingdom!"
"The great warrior who saved the princess!"
At the satisfied smile creeping over his face, Granada standing behind him frowned.
"Wipe that look off. Everyone's watching."
"You enjoy this that much?"
"I do."
"It's just hollow fluff..."
"Do you know? Fame doesn't arise simply because someone does something."
As the word implies—name value.
A name is only complete when someone else calls it.
Its worth only exists when someone praises it.
"You can slay monsters, clear out bandits, contribute to public order, and find treasures—but if no one else knows, there is nothing more meaningless."
It must be seen.
Others must witness it, marvel, and spread the word.
"That word of mouth might be from one person, or from many. And I assure you—this kind of kingdom-wide festival and parade is the pinnacle of such rumor-making."
So of course he would enjoy it.
"Fame becomes my honor. And it becomes my strength."
"Yes, yes. Congratulations."
Regardless, the stars of the parade were Hillen Cargill and the entire Red Hawk Assault Squad. Granada forced himself to maintain composure as he acknowledged the dwarves calling his name.
Granada lowered his voice further and whispered.
"We received word from the mountains."
"Again?"
"They say Acan's forces have arrived in Hotenwalk."
"There was no Hero campaign, and no assault squad would head to a place where they don't even know where the tower is."
"No, it's neither of those. They say Acan's elite forces include Lavinia Acan. Do you know of her?"
"Lavinia Acan…"
The Third Princess of Acan.
Even for Hillen Cargill—who knew nearly all royalty and nobility by memory—she was someone who remained unusually vivid.
A princess who required special caution.
He realized Acan's true objective.
"They intend to find the tower."
"He said the same thing earlier."
"We must stop them."
It would not do for the tower to be exposed, nor for it to fall. One day it must fall, but not now.
The Demon King tries to use me, but I am also using the Demon King.
Thanks to the Demon King, he had gained the Golden Moon Merchant Guild as a sponsor and received enormous funding.
Thanks to the Demon King, he had slain the Beast King.
Thanks to the Demon King, he had stopped the Demon King of Lust.
Thanks to that, he had become Arein of the headquarters.
He didn't know the details since the Demon King never told him everything, but surely the Demon King gained something in return. But was it greater than what he gained?
He doubted it—but even if it was greater, he didn't care.
What mattered was that Hillen was satisfied with their current relationship and wanted to enjoy it longer.
That was why he didn't want Berzé's advantage—the hidden tower—to disappear.
Revealing it meant the Hero campaign. The subjugation of the Demon King. And the end of their relationship.
"You should go yourself."
"What do you mean?"
"Take the Red Hawk Assault Squad and join them."
"...?"
"Tell them I sent you, and help them."
"If I show up suddenly and say I want to help, will Acan really welcome me?"
"They will. The Red Hawk Assault Squad has participated in the Hero campaign to Ergest, and you stayed by my side until the very end."
In the face of the harsh land of Ergest, experience was the most important asset.
"And after that…?"
"After that, we just wander around the areas without the tower, correct?"
"That would arouse suspicion. Acan's mages are very distrustful."
"Then?"
"Don't play any tricks—show them everything, one by one. Just leave the place with the tower for last."
In the process, the Acan Kingdom would suffer unavoidable casualties. They might even be annihilated.
"And if they manage to reach the end?"
"After that, the Demon King will take care of it."
Hillen had never heard of concealment magic that hid the tower itself. But he did understand something of Berzé Deias, the Demon King's craftiness.
Thus, ironically for a Hero, he trusted the Demon King.
"If you report their movements, plans, and everything from the inside, he will never fall."
There was a significant difference between viewing from the outside and manipulating from within. They would be like mice in the Demon King's hand.
"But if they ask how I knew Acan's movements, how should I answer?"
Whether the Hero Guild knew or not, the Guild had given Hillen no such information.
Suspicion would be inevitable.
"Say that after the failure of the Ergest Hero campaign, you planted agents in Hotenwalk—just in case."
"And they'll believe that?"
"Even if they don't, once a witness appears, they'll have no choice."
"Then you really…?"
"Of course it's a lie."
"..."
Granada's face twisted at the casual tone.
"Someone who's been deceived once will believe the lie as truth. That's what makes them the most reliable ally."
"...What does that even mean?"
"Just say Louise Verft will testify."
"...?"
He hadn't expected things to go this way, but this wasn't bad.
"As soon as the parade ends, leave. I'll handle things here."
"Understood."
Granada nodded.
The smile on Hillen Cargill's face deepened as he looked out at the dwarves.
***
"Not a bad plan."
It was similar to what Berzé had been thinking. In some ways, it was even more refined.
Berzé had simply planned to purchase people through the Golden Moon Merchant Guild and keep watch over them.
But Hillen Cargill's plan was better. It removed the risk of his relationship with Berzé being exposed.
After all, the troublemaking princess Louise Verft herself would serve as the perfect witness.
"Hillen Cargill…"
At first, he had followed Berzé only because of Armani's orb.
But slowly, he became acclimated—and now, he was offering better solutions himself.
Because it benefited him.
The current relationship between the Demon King and the Hero was less master-and-servant and more mutual symbiosis—each gaining from the other.
Even if that symbiosis was simply nurturing a piece to be used later, it didn't change the present.
And that was what had shaped Hillen Cargill into what he was.
The very model of a deeply greedy human.
"It seems we'll need to be cautious."
"I know what you mean."
This solution certainly helped Berzé, but it also fed Hillen Cargill's ambition to build good ties with Acan.
"If we survive this crisis, I'll have to spend all magic points on interference removal for a while."
Hillen Cargill was a viper. Unless he was absolutely sure he held the advantage, he would hide his fangs to the end. The foundation of that confidence was Berzé's own overwhelming strength.
"Yes."
"For now, we need to send those bastards back."
"According to Krutu, they have chimeras capable of detecting demonic energy."
"They do."
"Then what if we spread demonic energy all over the mountain to confuse them?"
"And if Granada stirs the wind from the inside, it'll be even easier."
"Yes."
"A good method."
And while they wander in confusion, perhaps he could casually cause a light avalanche or two.
Berzé went over every method he had used during the Hero campaign.
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