< 178. Ravinia and Cher >
Plop—
Ripples spread across the calm seawater. Monsters drawn by the scent of blood charged in, only to meet a bizarre end, burning to death underwater.
In the pitch-black abyss where not even light could penetrate, a massive tower lay at the seafloor.
The tower opened its doors at its master's arrival, and Berge stepped inside.
"It's the Demon King!"
"The Demon King's back!"
"How was it, my lord? The power of our special bombs!"
"I wanted to see it myself!"
"You promised to record it with the recording orb!"
"Thanks to our research on golem cores, we coated the mana with magic points just right, so they wouldn't notice until the moment of explosion... right?"
"...My lord?"
"...Are you alright?"
"Call Vivian. Now."
"The Demon King's hurt!"
"Maybe our bombs were stronger than we thought and he got caught in the blast?"
"That means they worked even on a Demon King, right? My skills are the real deal..."
The dwarves made a huge fuss as they hurried upstairs. Moments later, Vivian appeared.
"What the hell? Did it fail or something?"
"It succeeded. It's just..."
"Just?"
"No, never mind. There was one variable. But it's been handled."
"Doesn't look handled to me."
Even putting it kindly, Berge's condition was far from normal. Half his scales were torn off, deep black scars etched into his flesh. The blood pouring nonstop showed no sign of stopping.
"You're a Dragon Demon, aren't you? Your regeneration..."
"Dimensional Interference. It's suppressing my recovery. That's why I called you."
Succubi learned minor healing magic, after all. It was nothing compared to a proper healing mage, but better than nothing.
Especially since she was the Succubus Queen.
"You said you'd just watch, but did you get spotted and surrounded by tens of thousands?"
"Something like that."
The fight had been a one-on-one with Balaf Disrod, but the allied forces had swarmed around them, so it wasn't entirely wrong.
"So you tucked tail and ran?"
"I didn't tuck tail."
He'd only retreated temporarily because there was no path to finishing the fight.
Victory or defeat against that bastard wasn't certain. And even if he won, tens of thousands of panicked humans surrounded them.
He had no desire to end up as a wounded, pathetic dog hunted down after victory. So he'd swallowed his pride and pulled back.
"We call that running."
"Shut up. I'm not part of your 'we.'"
"Such pride. Fine, this is the best I can do."
"That's it?"
"Healing isn't my specialty to begin with."
"Not bad, though."
Berge checked his condition. The wounds weren't fully healed, but much of the interference had been lifted. They weren't lethal to begin with, so the rest would recover naturally with time.
"Are you alright, my lord?"
Gordon arrived late. Berge nodded.
"Summon the princesses immediately. I have questions."
Balaf Disrod. Doubts about that damned hero still lingered in his mind.
How did a mere hero possess the Red Dragon Sword?
How was a single hero that strong?
No.
'Is he really Balaf Disrod?'
Was he truly the greatest Star, the one who'd hunted a Demon King and lived as a hero for decades?
"Yes, sir."
"You come too, and you as well, Vivian."
"Got it."
Soon after, atop the tower gathered the Demon King, four princesses, his adjutant, and a former Demon King.
"Just now, the hero party fell into the trap I prepared."
"Ah."
"So they're all dead?"
"Dead?"
"Gotta be. Dwarf-made bombs are legendary."
In order: Kaede, Elena, Ravinia, and Luize.
"The heroes who entered the tower suffered near-total annihilation, and even the allied forces guarding outside took heavy losses."
"Wait, some survived?"
Luize furrowed her brow.
"Yes."
"No way. Dwarf bombs are the best on the continent! We planted dozens in that fake tower—how aren't they wiped out?"
"Doesn't change anything."
"Two possibilities in a case like this."
"What?"
"Not enough bombs, or that idiot Roger half-assed them!"
"Neither."
"No?"
"The explosive power was sufficient."
It had dealt a solid blow. More bombs would widen the range, but even then, they wouldn't have killed Balaf Disrod.
"But one bastard exceeded my expectations."
"Some ridiculously strong hero?"
"Balaf Disrod."
"Even he couldn't be that strong."
"He was. Kaede Jespain."
"Yes, my lord."
"You remember when I asked you about Balaf before."
"Yes."
"It was suspicion then."
"...And now?"
"Now it's certainty. He drew the Red Dragon Sword."
Kaede's pupils dilated.
"Impossible."
"Then the emperor must be involved, as you said."
"...If there's any possibility, that's it, but it's hard to believe Father would hand the empire's symbol to a mere hero."
"Balaf Disrod isn't a mere hero."
"Compared to the empire, he is."
"What if the emperor's rage toward me is that great?"
Berge had left a massive scar on the empire's proud honor.
He'd schemed with black mages in Hamstline Gorge to topple the nation and dropped monsters into imperial territory.
An emperor, the empire's sovereign, couldn't tolerate such provocation.
"But the Red Dragon Sword vanished before you dropped the monsters, didn't it?"
"True. But it was after Balaf's first failed hero exploit."
Of course, nothing was certain. Berge was merely considering a plausible possibility.
"Anyway, that's not the point now. Balaf Disrod's power. He fought me on equal footing."
After absorbing the Phoenix's corpse.
After absorbing the tower to boost interference negation efficiency.
Even after consuming a Dragon Heart.
This surpassed everything known about Balaf.
"How long has Balaf Disrod been a hero?"
"28 years. He first made his name in the empire's monster subjugation."
28 years. An eyeblink for a Dragon Demon like him, but a lifetime for a human.
And time didn't flow equally for everyone. Short-lived humans burned intensely, slaying Demon Kings before 50.
28 years wasn't eternity, but enough for a prodigy to grow immensely strong.
But even so.
'That level doesn't make sense.'
"How many Demon Kings has he slain?"
"One."
If he'd only slain and absorbed one Demon King, it made it even more absurd.
"Name?"
"The Demon King called the Blood Sea."
"The Blood Sea Demon King..."
He knew the name. Fittingly straightforward.
"Vampire Lord?"
"Yes. Subjugated about 15 years ago. Roughly 10 years since descent, at the time."
"Why was he targeted?"
Alein Demon Kings rarely acted rashly, per Jason Cockmond's design. They knew it favored survival.
A vampire who'd lasted 10 years would know that.
"He attacked eastern Hildean."
Elena answered instead.
"Eastern Hildean?"
"Yes. The Blood Sea Demon King commanded thousands of kin then."
"Why?"
"Hildean planned a subjugation due to his rapid expansion. He struck first."
"Acted like a typical rampaging Demon King, then."
"Probably. His assault razed eastern cities and villages. Father, then crown prince, formed a subjugation force and requested Hero Guild aid."
Unlike cases blocked by borders, unable to send armies—like Ormus losing a prince and sending thousands—Hildean decided to handle it directly.
While organizing the force, they requested Hero Guild help. Dispatched: Balaf Disrod.
"Balaf was just a rising hero then."
Strong, many subjugations, but no standout feat. Underrated, not a Star.
"The leader was Beyrn Cocknar, a Star."
"Dead?"
"Yes. Died during the Demon King subjugation. Balaf Disrod beheaded the Demon King and became the new Star."
"Afterward?"
"Pro-empire leanings, joined assaults, subjugated beasts and monsters often. Nothing special."
"Makes it stranger. Why call him the strongest hero with no specialties?"
It was true, though. No current hero surpassed him. Berge had experienced it firsthand.
"One incident."
"Incident?"
"A few years after the Blood Sea Demon King's death, as Balaf's fame rose. He clashed with Carlson Donet, then a Star."
"Carlson Donet?"
"Hailed as the strongest then."
Humans loved rankings. Among active heroes, the top Star was idolized, subtly crowned strongest.
Carlson Donet was the great hero before Balaf.
"No one knows why. Neither explained."
"But one day, they had an official duel at Traparta Union's guild HQ."
"Balaf won."
An obvious outcome.
"Yes. Overwhelmingly. One-sided from start to finish. Carlson couldn't land a scratch. Balaf severed his right arm. He retired."
A new powerhouse crushing the era's strongest. Awe and his rise were inevitable.
"And that's carried on."
"His many subjugations matter too. Those who fought with him revere him."
"Because he subjugates too easily?"
"Yes."
'Insufficient.'
All too vague. Crushing a prior Star seemed impressive at first, but paled against the power he'd shown.
'But to judge he'd had that strength since over a decade ago.'
Toying with fellow Stars then. For a human's short life, impressive.
"Before that?"
"Nothing notable. Even if there was..."
"No reason for you to obsess over one hero. Understood."
"Sorry I couldn't help more."
"It's fine."
It helped enough.
'I expected too much, comparing to Ernan, who knows everything.'
He'd habitually summoned the princesses, thinking of her. But a single hero's history wasn't their domain.
'I'll order Ernan, Hillon, and the Golden Moon to gather more on him.'
'And separately, proceed as planned. Kidnapping that bastard in this situation would shake the continent even more...'
Only then did he notice all eyes on him.
'Hm.'
Snapping from thought, Berge habitually reached into his subspace.
"Want chocolate?"
The princesses nodded.
* * *
Grrr—
The Titan opened his eyes. The familiar tower ceiling came into view.
He rose, scratching his rear and yawning lazily.
Then, alert, he inspected his body. He sighed in relief. Nothing had changed. Thankfully.
Groan—
His master always tinkered when he slept. Until recently, he hadn't minded.
He always woke stronger. As a demon and Titan, he instinctively pursued strength.
He trusted his master wouldn't harm him. Until recently.
That trust shattered soon after arriving at the tower. He woke to find something new on his ass. His bulky muscles gone, replaced by a strange shape.
A proud Titan saddled with a frail succubus tail.
Regressed muscles.
Shame for a Titan.
Even if from his caring, affectionate master, it was unforgivable.
He demanded it be removed immediately.
"Quiet."
But his master was firm, smacking his questioning head.
It hurt enough to bring tears.
He tried removing it himself, but it wouldn't budge, no matter how.
Undeterred, he declared no more changes to his body if the tail stayed.
He'd been dodging his master since.
"Cher."
Then, his master approached.
Cher shrank warily, mapping escape routes.
"Enhance."
Grrr—
She pointed at the tail.
"No."
Fine by him. He shook his head.
But his master didn't yield.
"This."
Monsters brought something. Gloriously beautiful crimson.
"Dragon scales."
"...!"
Lustrous dark sheen.
"Dragon horn, wings."
"...!"
"You?"
Cher imagined: covered in dragon scales, dragon horns and wings on his head, a majestic figure.
Beautiful. Fierce. His ideal.
Like a grand Dragon Demon. The noblest, greatest demon.
He nodded vigorously.
"Tail."
He nodded again.
For dragon scales and horns, he'd tolerate the succubus tail.
"Hand."
He extended his hand.
Thud—
Dizzying pain as his head slammed the floor. It hurt.
"No tantrums. Forward."
He swore no more tantrums, rubbing his face on her hand.
"Good boy."
Only then did his master smile.
Cher smiled too.
A bit humiliating, but so what. Dragon power awaited.