192. Scheme?
Berge's greatest strength was his bold decisiveness.
The moment he decided to take in the pirates and establish a base for them, he sent them back to their ships and guided them to the island.
Then the elves began planting trees, and the dwarves started constructing the harbor.
"...There are so many things we could make with dragon bones, and here we are building something like this."
"No, forget the dragon—even outfitting that massive tower with mana cannons everywhere is more urgent."
"Golems! Nothing is more important than golems made from dragon bones. Not some crappy harbor."
The dwarves, forced into hard labor, grumbled along with the golem artisans.
But they had no choice in the matter.
"To turn this barren land into a beautiful forest... I'm thrilled."
"Just imagining a future filled with lush woodlands brings me such joy."
Meanwhile, the oblivious elves were overjoyed. In the end, they resolved to finish the work as quickly as possible and get back to what they really wanted to do.
And so, the harbor and ships were coming together at an astonishing pace.
"The fleet has grown?"
"Yes, we even spotted Dormut's southern fleet circling down south, so it's safe to assume they're assembling their full naval power."
"Naval forces are gathering in places they shouldn't be. It looks like they're preparing something."
As Berge listened to his commanders' reports, he caught something off.
"It's not convincing enough to be about fighting pirates..."
Once it became known that the dwarves had been kidnapped not by pirates but by Berge himself, the dwarves backed out.
And the three nations that had already dealt a heavy blow to the pirates saw no need to push further.
Though they'd crushed the pirates' main forces, the pirates' true strength lay in their persistent guerrilla tactics using the islands.
With the three kingdoms already eyeing each other warily amid the subjugation efforts, the dwarves' withdrawal eliminated any reason to continue a war where the costs outweighed the gains.
Just as suddenly as the war had erupted, it came to an abrupt end.
Yet now they were reassembling the fleet?
"It can't be a war between humans."
The entire continent had united in outrage against the Demon King. With even bitter enemies like the Jespain Empire and Akan Kingdom joining hands, they weren't foolish enough to turn blades on each other.
"...No way?"
Had they figured out the tower's location...?
No, that was jumping to conclusions. How could they possibly find a tower submerged in the ocean depths?
It could just be training exercises.
He might just be overthinking it.
But Berge's instincts kept nagging at him. Deciding he couldn't resolve it alone, he summoned his adjutant, two Demon Kings, and four princesses.
"It's impossible to locate this tower with magic. Unless there's some tiny clue pinpointing the tower's position, scouring the entire continent would take centuries, let alone years."
Elena explained from a mage's perspective.
"I wouldn't know."
"Dunno."
Kaede and Ravinia simply clammed up.
"Even the dwarves' magic detection tech is advancing, but finding this? No way."
The dwarf princess declared it impossible as well.
Just as he started to relax—
"They could find it."
"They could?"
The Frost Demon King raised the possibility.
"Through Alkain Daegong."
"How?"
"It would consume some magic points, but an archduke can always check the location of any tower under their jurisdiction."
It was a privilege only archdukes possessed, but there were frost demons among them—some still were.
And Reina, as a frost demon noble, had plenty of connections with them.
"Of course, that assumes Jason Cockmondo really wants you dead, as you said. If he asked Alkain Daegong about your tower's location and the archduke passed it to his human allies, then yes."
Reina hadn't initially believed Jason was so intent on killing Berge. She'd suspected it, but lacked certainty.
But after becoming Berge's subordinate and losing her connection to Ma-gye, she was convinced. There wasn't a shred of falsehood in Berge's words.
"But that's just one possibility..."
"No, it doesn't hurt to prepare."
It might be a pointless worry, but preparing for the worst was always wise.
"So, if they've found my tower and are gearing up to attack it, what method do you think they'd use?"
"Do we even need to worry? No matter how you slice it, humans can't get inside the tower."
Everyone nodded at Vivian's words.
The Flame Demon Tower was currently 120 meters below the deep sea, invisible from the surface.
Logically, they couldn't sink ships that deep, so entering the tower would mean diving straight into these monster-infested waters.
"We could just keep moving the tower until they tire out and give up."
Mobility. Everyone knew what a massive advantage that was.
"Hmm."
Berge rested his chin on his hand, pondering. It wasn't wrong, but sitting idle still felt off.
He was certain that if Jason knew the tower was underwater, he wouldn't prepare lightly.
"Ah."
Then Luize let out an exclamation.
"There is one way to bring an army down to the deep sea."
"What?"
"The buoyancy ship."
"Buoyancy ship?"
"It's our kingdom's national treasure..."
"National treasure? Explain properly."
"There's only one in the entire kingdom—no, the whole continent. It's the pinnacle of dwarven magitech."
"Berft Kingdom is landlocked. No oceans, not even a big lake—so 'buoyancy ship' means it flies through the sky?"
"Exactly. The buoyancy ship was built around a massive floating stone discovered in the Berft Mountains. A one-of-a-kind find, past and future."
Floating stones were rare ores that levitated when infused with mana. You couldn't just buy them no matter how much money you offered.
"And? If it flies, we'd need to watch out, but the tower's in the ocean."
"It's called 'buoyancy,' but at its core, it's a 'ship'—a battleship that can submerge."
"...!"
It was also known as Berft's final bastion.
* * *
Jason kept his promise.
"Jason Cockmondo has sent magic points."
"Use them all to dispel the dimensional interference."
Dorche Astrin used every point to lift his interference.
He clenched his fist at the partial return of his power.
"...This should be enough."
About half, maybe. Paltry compared to his Ma-gye days. But plenty to teach a young, arrogant fledgling the world's harsh lessons—summoned just over two years ago.
"So, where's his tower?"
"Well..."
His adjutant projected a hologram. Dorche scowled at the continent-spanning map.
"The ocean? This can't be right."
"Straight from Alkain Daegong himself."
"Unbelievable."
A tower shouldn't be in an unreachable wilderness or an obvious city spot. It had to be just right—somewhere heroes and humans could plausibly find it.
That was the great first Mahwang's teaching.
Yet what gave this bratty young dragon the nerve to act so brazenly?
"If I'd been at the graduation, I'd have ripped his jaws off myself."
He'd been in a long slumber after fully conquering a dimension back then.
Missing the chance to punish a fool tarnishing his race and the first Mahwang's prestige was a eternal regret.
"Do the humans know?"
"Yes, they're preparing a hero procession."
"Hero procession, huh. Must be on a different scale here."
In any dimension, heroes were hope incarnate. Their boisterous departures, laden with all life's expectations, were universal.
"Yes, hundreds of heroes by the numbers."
"Definitely a mad dimension. But how do they plan to reach a tower in the deep sea?"
"Per Jason Cockmondo's message, Berge left some traces."
Jason hadn't admitted using his human connections. To the prideful, arrogant Dorche, allying with humans was unthinkable.
He might've flown into a rage and attacked Jason first if he'd known the truth.
"At least he has a shred of conscience left."
Tsk, Dorche clicked his tongue.
But he had no intention of letting it slide. The graduation fiasco alone was reason enough to kill the young dragon.
"Fine, we'll observe for now. I'll move based on the procession's outcome."
Dorche was arrogant but a veteran who'd conquered five dimensions.
He wasn't stupid enough to charge in without a plan—especially not against a rookie Demon King with no real backing, in a world infamous as Alein.
"Watch how he handles the heroes, then devise countermeasures."
"Who do you think will win?"
"Hard to say for sure."
Alein's reputation meant heroes had to triumph.
But if it were that simple, would Jason Cockmondo have paid dearly to beg Alkain Daegong for help?
"They say the heroes are sharpening their blades, and Berge survived not by raw power but by schemes—so the focus isn't victory or defeat. It's whether Berge lives or dies."
"Understood."
"And we just observe: what powers the heroes wield, how they target Berge."
"What if Berge dies?"
"If the heroes are weak, we'll slaughter them. If stronger than expected, we'll quietly dispel interference and bide our time."
And vice versa...
"I'll tear the exhausted Berge apart with my own hands."
"All will go as you wish, my lord. But..."
"But?"
"Jason's motives are suspicious."
Magic points weren't just for dispelling interference. If so, Ma-gye demons wouldn't obsess over conquering other dimensions for them.
Freshly summoned, dispelling interference was most efficient—but points retained value even after.
Gained from other lives' vitality and negative emotions, they directly empowered demons.
Why else strive to become Demon Kings, return stronger after conquests?
"Handing over such precious points so easily, amassing this much in just a century even after dispelling his interference..."
"You're right. He has ulterior motives. Maybe planning to backstab me, or using us to weaken the heroes for his own gain."
But it didn't matter.
"If he could've handled it alone, he wouldn't have asked for help. No threat at that level."
His centuries of life had taught him one truth.
No scheme withstands overwhelming power.
"But fully dispelling interference..."
"If needed, strike from behind during their fight and absorb their power. They're this world's strongest, hundreds of them—enough to dispel a ton of interference."
That would suffice.
He was a great dragon, after all.
"All will unfold as you decree, Lord Dorche."
His adjutant bowed.
"Obviously. Straightening out a wayward young dragon is an elder's duty."
Even if by killing him.
The great dragon licked his lips.
That young dragon's power would surely prove useful.