087. Where Is She?
Akan wasn't the only goal in keeping the Tower hidden. New objectives had arisen.
Defeating and seizing the golems.
And kidnapping the golem artisans.
They were the foundation for building a better, stronger Tower.
After hearing Berge Dayas's goals, Ernan Hildean offered a few pieces of advice.
"Akan treats golems like special strategic assets. They never export anything but the lowest models, and they manage them meticulously. If one breaks, they collect every last scrap."
"Meaning?"
"Unless they're pushed to the absolute brink, even if a golem is destroyed, they'll try to recover it and retreat as best they can."
"Not easy, then."
But that didn't mean it was impossible.
"Roger Friedri said it was an orichalcum alloy, right? That means it's definitely a cutting-edge model not yet revealed to the world. We don't know its power or destructive force, but considering it's superior to any golem released so far..."
He knew the rest without her saying it.
"You think I can't win?"
"Unless the Demon King steps in personally, it's impossible."
He'd gotten that vibe. No matter how fiercely the orcs charged, they'd all end up as corpses.
Akan's forces weren't just packing golems, after all.
"Will you step in yourself?"
"Impossible."
With the Phoenix's corpse granting him new power and identity, he no longer needed to be bound by his Demon King status—but the other Demon Kings were the problem.
A Demon King leaving their Tower and appearing elsewhere would definitely raise issues. It directly violated the tenets of the Demon King's Canon.
If Berge intervened and someone escaped alive to spread word of his atrocities, the other Demon Kings wouldn't stay silent.
Reports would fly straight to the Archdukes, and penalties would come in some form or another.
And he couldn't just wipe them all out. Akan wouldn't sit idly by. Who knew what chain reaction that might trigger?
"Then there's no way."
"There is. No need to corner them with my own blade. This is the Erjest Mountains, after all."
Plenty of blades to do the job instead.
"......"
Ravinia Akan opened her eyes.
"Demonic energy."
Rubbing her bleary eyes, she sat up.
"Princess?"
A knight guarding the tent spotted her.
"Demonic energy."
"Pardon?"
"Demonic energy."
Woof woof woof—
Right on cue, the hellhounds started barking. Bound to heavy pillars enchanted with weight magic to prevent escape, they thrashed in a frenzy.
Only then did the knight grasp her meaning.
"You're sensing demonic energy?"
"Yeah."
"Please wait just a moment. I'll inform His Highness right away!"
Soon, the sleeping camp sprang to life. Cain Akan hurriedly donned his armor and rushed to Ravinia.
"Sister, are you really sensing demonic energy?"
"Yeah."
"Where?"
"That way."
"Must be pretty faint."
"Yeah."
"What about the others?"
"Very faint, but I feel it."
Her finger pointed to nothing but snow. Cain couldn't sense any demonic energy himself.
But he trusted Ravinia. The hellhounds' howls and the matching claims from the accompanying heroes bolstered his certainty.
But.
'Moving at night isn't a good call.'
And something that hadn't been felt during the day suddenly appeared.
That meant it wasn't a Tower. A stationary Tower wouldn't hide its presence only to reveal it again.
'Never heard of such a thing.'
Only one possibility remained: a monster—or a demon.
'A demon appearing near camp in the dead of night...'
An ambush.
"Assume alert status immediately! Monsters might swarm us!"
"Yes, sir!"
Soldiers scrambled. Mages reinforced barriers with spells, knights and soldiers took positions, and mages hurriedly memorized incantations. A soldier on the makeshift watchtower peered into the darkness with a magic telescope.
"Nothing approaching yet!"
"Don't drop your guard!"
They stayed up all night like that.
"......?"
And the Demon King watching from afar tilted his head.
"Sending monsters might be less effective than this."
His initial irritation at them sensing the energy but not pursuing had long faded.
It was a shame for Berge, but he couldn't reuse the same tactic twice.
"Let's pursue it once, at least."
After pulling an all-nighter, Cain took brief rotating rests even as the demonic energy persisted into daylight, then cautiously advanced toward its source.
"Could it be a Demon King's trap?"
"We have no leads anyway. Whether it's the real Demon King Tower or a trap, we have to check it out."
To minimize losses, they put the golems up front.
"Granada, do you recognize this path?"
"It's not one the hero party took."
"Then it's more likely."
No Demon King Tower at the end of the hero party's path, so unknown routes held more promise.
"Sister, guide us well."
"Yeah."
Monsters increased the deeper they went. The terrain grew harsher. Their pace naturally slowed.
"Camp here tonight!"
One day, two, three, four. They delved deeper into the Erjest Mountains' heart, fighting more monsters.
But not a single demon or monster with demonic energy among them.
The funny part? The demonic energy was still there.
The hellhounds, Ravinia Akan, and the twelve heroes with them all claimed the same.
It was growing thicker.
'A trap?'
But it was too late to turn back. They had to see what lay at the end.
Another day passed.
"...It's quiet today."
"No ambushes, for once."
That day, monsters were eerily absent.
"Weird."
Everyone knew it without Ravinia saying. Something was happening.
Tension peaked.
"Found it."
"There!"
They finally reached the source.
It was.
Grrr—
A single dog.
A Hell Hound, called the hound of hell. A monster over 3 meters tall that devoured most beasts whole.
But not one radiating demonic energy strong enough to sense from afar.
"No."
Ravinia shook her head. That wasn't the energy she'd tracked.
A thick sense of foreboding swept through them.
"Everyone, retreat! Turn back immedia—!"
Woof woof woof—
The hellhounds howled furiously. The Titan pounded its chest.
Rumble rumble—
The ground shook. Then collapsed.
Yelp—
The Hell Hound screamed. A massive maw swallowed it.
Crunch—
Red flesh sprayed everywhere.
Cain swallowed hard at the beast devouring everything with grinding bites.
Legs like bedrock.
A body heavy as a mountain.
A head huge and ravenous.
A monster that chewed and swallowed all.
It was.
A Behemoth.
A monster that even devoured ogres. Possessed of demonic energy, some argued it should be classified as such.
The monster's red eyes scanned its prey. It finished swallowing its mouthful. Tusks like horns protruded from its lips, glistening with blood.
"...Can we escape?"
"Despite its size, the Behemoth has explosive power surpassing an ogre's."
Denial.
Cain bit his lip, cold sweat dripping.
"If we fight?"
"We can win, barring a major mistake."
The Blue Meteor Mage Corps captain voiced his confidence.
Fair enough—a Behemoth was impressive, but no match for Demon Kings.
The problem? They weren't equipped to take down Demon Kings.
'No, this won't do.'
It wasn't about win or lose.
The Erjest Mountains were vast, monsters plentiful, and this was deep in the range.
Fierce battle would wound both sides regardless of victory, forcing a hellish retreat for the battered Akan force.
Cain couldn't accept that toll.
"Draw its attention with a golem and retreat slowly..."
Pity to lose one, but it was expendable. Better than lives. No one in Erjest would salvage and reverse-engineer the wreckage anyway.
That was when.
"Your Highness. Behind us..."
"Ha...!"
Cain let out a hollow laugh. Far off, hundreds of Frost Orcs appeared, blocking their retreat precisely.
A trap, after all.
"Sir Dolkin."
"Yes, Your Highness."
The White Wolf Knight Order captain responded gravely.
"Lead the soldiers and hold the Frost Orcs. My sister and I, the golems, and Blue Meteor will take down the Behemoth. Just hold until then."
"We'll sweep them aside and return to help you sever that beast's head."
"We'll assist too."
"Thank you. That's reassuring."
Cain smiled faintly at Granada's words.
"Don't let the battle drag on."
Frost Orcs and Behemoth were manageable. But if the commotion and blood drew more monsters, true hell would begin.
Rawr—
The Behemoth's roar snapped his thoughts. It leaped, blotting the sun as it plummeted toward Akan's group.
"Block it!"
Clank clank—
Golems moved frantically, planting feet and thrusting fists.
Boom!
Golems staggered but halted its charge. And atop them.
"Monster."
"Material."
The Titan Chimera dropped, princess of greed perched on its shoulder.
Rawr—
The Titan landed on the Behemoth's back. A thud shook its 10-meter frame.
Titan punched down; golems swarmed from all sides.
One 10m Behemoth, five 5m golems, one Titan.
Numbers suggested victory for the many. But the Behemoth's terror wasn't mere size—it was overwhelming power transcending it.
Clank clank—
Golems covering it screeched grotesquely and flew off. Its massive jaws crunched a golem's arm.
Scraaaape—
Sparks flew. The golem endured thanks to orichalcum alloy—nothing more, nothing less.
Behemoth hurled the arm-bit golem, slamming into the charging Titan.
Boom!
Rawr—
Titan screamed, flung away. Ravinia buried in snow.
"Sister!"
Azure aura surged from Cain's sword, honed razor-sharp, slashing the Behemoth's flank.
Scraaaape—
An unbelievable sound, like blade on skin repelling aura. Recoil jolted Cain; red blood sprayed.
Behemoth howled in agony.
A golem punched into its open maw. Tusks rattled with the impact.
Then Blue Meteor mages unleashed spells. Ice shards pelted its hide. Tough skin held, but its body shuddered.
"Spectacular."
Berge, watching from afar, burst into laughter.
Monsters over 5m clashing? Common in Ma-gye, unimaginable in the mid-plane.
"Orichalcum indeed... Not even a scratch from the Behemoth's teeth!"
"No mere scratch."
"Holding up under that abuse without breaking! Akan's magitech is unrivaled on the continent!"
Hmm, best ignore that.
Berge's gaze returned to the battlefield.
As the monster melee began, Frost Orcs clashed with knights on the opposite flank.
Krutoo and his guard took the White Wolf Knights; the rest overran soldiers.
The fight was fierce; orcs disadvantaged.
Krutoo yielded to the White Wolf captain; guards barely held knights. Rank-and-file fared no better.
Orcs lagged in every way.
'Akan's elites, as expected.'
Clear how much Akan banked on this op.
But Berge wasn't disappointed. He'd anticipated it; orcs weren't there for extermination.
That instant.
Boom!
A golem flung from the Behemoth crashed into the human-orc melee's center. Orcs and men beneath perished silently. Formations crumbled; chaos erupted.
Simultaneously, Krutoo and guards charged.
Target: golem artisans.
Knights pursued desperately, but Frost Wolves hidden in snow leaped from all sides, tearing into them.
"No!"
The prince called Cain screamed upon spotting orcs.
Collisions followed.
Golem artisans and mages, fixated on the Behemoth, fell defenselessly.
Golems didn't stop immediately. Not highly advanced, but ego-bearing. They fought to the next command.
Now, they'd battle relentlessly, Behemoth dead or themselves destroyed.
And artisans weren't mere commanders/maintainers.
They bolstered golems with spells for flexibility. Without them, golem combat power plummeted.
Reality reflected it instantly.
Boom!
Golems shook. Behemoth repelled three in a flash, rampaging.
Titan blocked its charge but skidded back, gouging the ground.
Meanwhile, Krutoo blew the retreat horn.
Frost Orcs withdrew in unison. Akan troops wanted pursuit, but the rampaging Behemoth took priority.
"Block the Behemoth!"
"Knights! Protect His Highness!"
"Ignore the orcs!"
White Wolf captain Dolkin gnashed his teeth, suppressing the urge to chase. His top duty: guard Cain and Ravinia.
Knights rushed the Behemoth.
Dolkin's sword unleashed a 3m aura blade, carving a long gash on its back as it crunched a golem head.
Rawr—
Sickening screams felled weary soldiers.
'Damn, never an easy day.'
Granada gritted his teeth, whispering to the Red Hawk Assault Team eyeing each other warily.
"Flee here, and you're branded cowards. Fight at least once before pulling back."
"O-Of course."
Bark hurled himself at the Behemoth. Aura-reinforced sword met hide—or rather, its tail whipped him first. His form vanished in snow, unmoving.
Probably stay down till battle's end.
Red Hawk followed Bark.
'...These guys too.'
Granada clicked his tongue.
The battle dragged on.
"...Huff, huff."
Cain spat blood from his mouth.
The Behemoth's massive body thudded down. A mini-avalanche buried the exhausted Akan group.
"Are you alright?"
Blue Meteor's barrier enveloped them. The captain approached Cain.
"...Fine. Assess the damage."
"Yes."
Soldiers bustled to secure the site.
"Orc ambush hit the mages and golem artisans lightly—no major losses. Problem is three golems totaled beyond repair."
"Mm."
"Knights and soldiers fared better than expected. Orcs retreated."
"Small mercy."
Unclear why, but milder than the fierce fight suggested.
"Recover the dead, secure the Behemoth corpse, and get out. Ah, but..."
Cain scanned around.
"Where is my sister?"
Ravinia and the Titan were nowhere.