214. Grand Unity
The False Tower.
The Demon King's tower, which had guarded its place for the longest time, stood within a massive lake.
In Grasical Lake, larger than most kingdoms and bordering no fewer than three kingdoms and one alliance.
The tower rose imposingly from a tiny island at its center.
Thus, subjugating the False Tower required a ship without fail.
Soon enough, that lake would be filled with countless vessels.
"To subjugate me, that is."
Jason savored his drink while gazing at the lake sparkling under the sunlight. The fragrant fruit wine tickled his nose.
"It'll be quite the spectacle, won't it?"
"......"
The great Thunder Dragon, Dorche Astrin, silently glared at him with lips pressed tight.
"Hillun Kargil and Ernan Hildean have set off for Traparta to join the fray. I was mistaken from the start."
A smile played on Jason's lips.
"Who would have thought the crown princess of Hildean Kingdom was the infamous Dark Spirit Summoner? Surprising, isn't it?"
He had assumed it was simply Hillun manipulating Ernan Hildean's actions. No. Ernan Hildean was the true mastermind.
The core serving the Demon King.
The leader of the Four Heavenly Kings, issuing commands even to Hillun Kargil.
How on earth?
"How in the world did you kidnap a kingdom's crown princess and turn her into your subordinate? Lord Berge's ingenuity is truly astounding."
"......"
"Isn't it?"
Jason turned his head. Their eyes met. A brief silence hung in the air.
"...I."
Jason's brow furrowed. He hurled the glass aside and strode forward, seizing Dorche's face in his grip.
—!
Dorche's body toppled backward along with the chair.
"I'm asking you, you disgusting Thunder Dragon whelp."
"Kuh...!"
A groan escaped through Jason's fingers.
"Is that the look a vassal gives their lord? Or are you insisting that even as an unwilling vassal, a proud dragon's ego can't be broken so easily?"
His grip tightened. Dorche's head began grinding into the floor.
In excruciating pain and humiliation, Dorche gritted his teeth.
"...What proof is there that they are Berge's vassals?"
"Didn't you witness it yourself?"
Only then did the hand release him. The shattered mask reformed to its original state.
Jason straightened his disheveled clothes and hair.
Aina Semun poured fresh fruit wine into a new glass and handed it over.
"A human summoning a Spirit King. There's only one such person in all of Alein. And if it's the King of Water Spirits, it couldn't be anyone else."
And that was just the beginning.
"I never dreamed the Four Heavenly Kings were all princesses. Lord Berge amazes me more with each passing day."
"You're saying they're all princesses, not mere lowly races? And I should believe that?"
A kidnapped princess fighting heroes for the Demon King who abducted her? He had conquered five dimensions as a Demon King, yet he'd never seen such a thing.
"That's precisely why Lord Berge is so remarkable."
"He's nothing but trash who mocks the canon."
"Countless Demon Kings who clung to that flimsy canon here have fallen by the wayside."
"How dare you insult the canon!"
"Of course. Do you think I, who despises filthy dragons like you, would admire the canon created by the Founding Mahwang, another dragon?"
Why else would I be fixated on Alein?
Dorche was dumbfounded by Jason's smiling mockery of the Founding Mahwang and the canon, at a loss for words.
"Just who the hell are you? You're no Jason Cockmondo."
"Of course not. But for now, I am. At least the current me is the False Demon King, Jason Cockmondo."
"I'm your vassal now."
"You spew such garbage without any intention of cooperating properly."
No intention of spilling secrets, huh? It was expected, but it irked Dorche all the same, and he bit his lip.
"So Berge plans to use the heroes to take you down?"
"Ernan Hildean and Ravinia Akan have joined. What do you think that means? Lord Berge desperately wishes for my death."
"Simple enough. Just spread rumors that the princesses are Berge's puppets."
"Got any proof?"
"Well, I..."
"You saw it, but you didn't record it with a recording orb, did you? Foolishly."
"The heroes! The surviving heroes...!"
"Lord Berge, who has meticulously planned everything since descending, cornering humanity at every turn. Do you think he overlooked that? The freed heroes have likely all become his vassals by now."
"That's absurd...!"
"Princesses did, and even Stars. Ordinary heroes would be a piece of cake for him."
At least for Lord Berge.
Without that certainty, Berge wouldn't have paraded the princesses and then released them. He'd have killed them all.
"Maybe we should rename the Flame Demon Tower from 'Flame Calamity' to 'Temptation'."
"So you're just going to take it lying down? By your account, tens of thousands will come charging in!"
"Are you scared?"
"Scared? I, the great De...!"
—!
Dorche rolled across the floor.
"Ah, sorry. Hearing that 'great Thunder Dragon' nonsense makes my hand move on its own. Know your place as the lizard crawling at my feet."
Jason dusted off his hand.
"Ever tried painting?"
"Painting?"
"When painting, you first sketch the frame and skeleton, then add details. After that, you apply color with paint."
But here's the thing.
"Once you layer on the paint, mistakes are hard to fix. Paint doesn't wipe off easily. A master might manage to some extent, but push too far and the paper tears."
"Why bring that up suddenly?"
"Listen quietly. Don't flap your insolent jaws."
"......"
"And that's not all. Once it's that far gone, the more you fiddle, the worse it gets. Trying to improve only ruins it more. Know what to do then?"
"......"
"Of course a dumb dragon wouldn't. My way is to 'rip up the paper and start on fresh canvas.' Others might differ, but that's mine."
Pity the work so far, but you can't mend a torn paper by clinging to it.
Better to boldly discard and draw anew.
"A very splendid new picture."
Jason laughed.
Hero Guild.
The guild's honor, upheld for centuries, had fallen to the ground.
Not quite trampled in the mud, but undeniably lowered.
And for those involved, the guild descending from its lofty heights to the earth was shock enough.
Especially for the Great Elder, who had devoted everything to the guild and its master.
"Guild Master, where on earth are you?"
He called out in anguish. No reply came. The office prepared for him remained empty.
It had been a long wait for his return. An era of endurance against the greedy fangs eyeing the guild.
Though Balaf Disrod was rising as a new power, the Great Elder believed the Guild Master would reclaim and right the guild upon return.
Because he was a great hero who had lived centuries, unknown to the world.
Indeed, in his brief presence, if only for a moment, it had been so.
He restored order to the chaotic guild and planned a hero expedition.
He deceived the Demon King and created a true hero expedition. So why vanish suddenly?
'Did the hero expedition fail?'
If it failed, he should step up even more, no?
To fill the void and restore the guild's fallen honor—this was the time for the Guild Master to act.
"Why, just where did you disappear to?"
His eyes darkened as he clutched his head.
"No, no. This isn't the time."
The Guild Master wasn't the type to die in some ditch.
No need to worry. He'd return when needed, just as he had swiftly steadied the faltering guild and launched the expedition.
He must have vanished for some greater purpose.
'Then my role is...'
To calm the shaken guild, restore its honor, and polish the seat for his return to shine brighter.
'First...'
He recalled his last conversation with the Guild Master.
"...Hillun Kargil."
Hillun Kargil was a lackey of the Flame Demon King.
Excluded as bait. Though it ultimately failed, Hillun Kargil remained a betrayer of humanity.
"A traitor..."
Must be killed.
A Star Hero daring to betray humanity.
"Guards! Summon Argan and Hillun Kargil at once!"
At the same time, he called upon the shadows loyal to the guild.
'A hero who slew two Demon Kings. Can't be careless.'
No rash killing either. As a Demon King's lackey, he knew too much.
The Great Elder began secretly sharpening the blade for Hillun's neck.
'Guild Master—no, Lord Daniel—I'll clear anyone obstructing your path.'
Having served Daniel Dayrus for so long, he knew the Guild Master was his other guise.
But he never dreamed Daniel had secretly forged a new identity as Balaf Disrod.
Having fully dismantled the Buoyancy Ship and extracted the buoyancy stones, the dwarves huddled together.
"Is this enough?"
"Plenty. If we lay out the magic circuits right, it'll fly just fine. And pretty damn fast, too."
"The structure..."
"Like the Buoyancy Ship. It's been refined over centuries into the ideal form!"
The dwarves who had operated and maintained the Buoyancy Ship joining was pure luck.
Roger and the royal workshop artisans were skilled, but buoyancy ships weren't their specialty.
At best, occasional repairs. These new captives, however, were experts in buoyancy stones and dwarf ships.
"Alright. So attach the buoyancy stones to the bottom and wire the circuits. But then the legs are the issue."
"Modify the legs, then."
"No other way, right?"
"Obviously. The Sky Tower's great, but we can't ditch legs that roam freely anywhere!"
"Like you can't ditch those last few hairs?"
"What, you bald dwarf bastard?"
"Hey, hey! Calm down, everyone—on to the next! We agreed to finish before Lord Demon King arrives, didn't we?"
Roger soothed the dwarves on the verge of brawling.
"How to refit the legs, how to integrate the buoyancy stones."
"Stay in leg form normally, fold inward when flying?"
"Stones go under the tower—that'd block them."
Efficiency drops.
"Fold outward along the walls, then."
"Not bad. Then mount mana cannons on those legs? Better than punching random holes in the walls."
"Ho, not bad at all."
The dwarves sketched hundreds of designs across hundreds of sheets.
"Gotta reinforce the legs. Can't weaken with cannons added."
"True. Needs bracing."
"Final form: legs retract, revealing hidden buoyancy stones at the base."
"Protect the stones too. One stray mana cannon hit and boom."
"Obviously. Add defensive arrays and shields."
"Um, excuse me..."
A younger dwarf raised his hand.
"Buoyancy stones are mana stones, right? Could we cast spells through them?"
"Spells?"
"Like straight-line lightning magic. Buoyancy Ships couldn't spare the mana, but Sky Tower runs on magic points, yeah?"
The dwarves envisioned it.
Sky Tower soaring through the heavens.
Hundreds of mana cannons blazing.
A massive lightning bolt lancing straight down from below, devastating the ground.
That was.
A catastrophe.
Unstoppable destruction.
"Fucking brilliant!"
"Let's gooooo!"
"I just pictured it—bathroom break!"
"Why didn't we think of that? Sky Tower's Lord Demon King's, so tons of enemies. Needs more weapons!"
"Lightning on mana cannons, flames from the whole tower. Keep foes at bay."
"What're we waiting for? Build it!"
As ideas poured out, the dwarves' hands flew in manic frenzy.
Then, a passing elf glanced at a blueprint.
"What's this hideous thing?"
Frowning, the elf hurried up to report to Elena and Sharlot.
Moments later, dozens of elves descended en masse.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"Eh? Doing what Lord Demon King ordered, of course..."
Roger flinched at Elena's sharp tone.
"This?"
She thrust a blueprint forward.
"Yes. Any problem?"
"Problem? Too many to count."
The elves nodded one by one at her reply.
"Way too many."
"Dwarves, honestly..."
"Calling this design? Go die, you runts."
"Ugh, gross. Did dwarf aesthetics devolve into extinction?"
"Turning Lord Demon King's majestic tower into some junkyard scrapheap?"
"Not a thought for his dignity?"
"Outta the way!"
Elena and the elves began overhauling the tower's design.
"Ho, definitely better."
"Mm, annoying, but the pointy-ears' version is a bit..."
"Ahem."
A grand unity between dwarves and elves.