Chapter 139

Aman Katrasch.

Vice-master of the Golden Moon Merchant Guild and the Demon King’s Black Knight—
he was a rather capable merchant.

Originally he had been a knight, but after his aura-hole was destroyed, he was forced into the life of a merchant—
luckily, he had a natural aptitude for it.

But what he handled was not simple trade.

It was the procurement of supplies for the Demon King—
the greatest enemy of mankind.

That was the Golden Moon Guild’s highest priority.
Though only a tiny handful within the guild knew it.

“…This is too much. Too many rare materials… I don’t know if I can acquire all of this.”

For once, the man who always carried himself with confidence showed difficulty.
The list of materials handed to him by the elf—under the Demon King’s orders—was truly enormous.

“Are you short on money?”

“I cannot guarantee anything.”

The Demon King’s initial investment of 100,000 gold had grown significantly through the efforts of his father and their subordinate merchants.

However, due to ongoing business ventures, actual liquid funds were not high—
and as the guild was now incorporated into a broader supply chain, he also had to mind the eyes of the executives.

On top of that, many of the materials the Demon King wanted were rare and extremely expensive.

“If I suddenly buy all of these at once, the guild will stagger.”

And that wasn’t the only issue.
They could not openly state who they were buying these goods for.

Even if he somehow persuaded the executives to approve the purchases,
once the goods disappeared without a trace—

Would those same executives really say, “Ah yes, of course,” and accept it peacefully?

Aman held nearly full authority in place of his aging, half-retired father,
but the guild was not his alone.

“If proper payment comes in afterward, would the executives really make a fuss?”

“Well… that is true.”

In the end, they were merchants.
Even if the goods vanished, as long as proper compensation arrived afterward, merchants could accept it.

That didn’t mean the issue would disappear entirely—
but at least the guild problem might be resolved.

“What about the mana cannons?”

“Mana cannons?”

“I assume you have an idea how the materials we send to the tower are being used.”

“Of course.”

He had seen them with his own eyes—
the countless mana cannons crafted by the dwarf on the first floor.

“You don’t mean… those mana cannons…?”

“The Demon King said he is willing to use them as payment.”

“Oh…!”

Not bad.
No—excellent.
Mana cannons were the pinnacle of magi-engineering alongside golems.
Every nation’s military wanted them as strategic weapons.

And many lacked the capability to produce them themselves—
making it easy to find buyers.

“But if they are dwarf-made mana cannons, the Kingdom of Verft won’t stay quiet.”

If the dwarves believed their strategic goods were being exported,
they would immediately investigate and take action.
That was simply how dwarves handled military tech.

“You need not worry. The Demon King said he will lower the quality slightly.
To around the level of the better human-made ones—just about that much.”

“In that case, it’s fine!”

“I’ll report to the Demon King as such.”

The elf disappeared.

Aman watched her figure fade into the distance and fell into thought.

He had answered excitedly because of the term mana cannon,
but his earlier statement was true.

‘If it’s mana cannons, the executives will go wild.’

Not long after he became a Black Knight, the guild had received investment and began handling military supplies—
and as relations between humans and the Demon King worsened, that business began shining.

And mana cannons were the crown jewel of that industry.

Of course, exporting such items would require a great deal of bribery,
but the value was worth it.

However—

‘Selling mana cannons… That means the situation must be quite urgent.’

Aman was sensitive to information—
and even a non-merchant would understand the current political climate.

The Jespine Empire and the Kingdom of Hilderan were grinding their teeth toward the Infernal Tower.

Daphner Philian was dead.
The tower’s location had finally been revealed.

A warrior expedition was inevitable.

The Demon King must have made this decision in anticipation.

‘I don’t know what he intends, but I have no choice but to obey.’

Having made a contract with the Demon King, betrayal was not an option.

He did hold resentment for the destruction of his aura-hole—
but the gratitude for saving his collapsing guild and reviving his family outweighed it.

And now the Demon King, though demanding much, was also providing a path—however narrow—to survive.

So he would follow the flow.

He would help the Demon King with all his strength—

And if the Demon King died, he would simply erase him from memory and live as an ordinary man.

‘Still… gathering all this will be quite a headache…’

He had to locate the resources, check the distribution networks, and persuade the executives.

‘Persuading the executives will be possible.’

The Demon King would soon send a few mana cannons as samples—
and with those, persuading them would be easy.
None of the executives were fools who would pass up a chance to handle such strategic weapons.

‘What I need is the right man.’

Someone who could travel the continent and procure the items demanded by the Demon King.
Some were rare enough that he’d need to attend auctions personally.

And he had to conserve money as much as possible.

Just then, someone came to mind.

“Is anyone outside?”

“Yes.”

“Bring me Jetoson.”

“Yes.”

The man the Demon King had sent—
a smooth-tongued salesman whose skills were impeccable.

***

“So, the Warrior Guild refused?”

“Yes.”

While Berze was devising the insane plan to move the tower,
Hillen Cargill left the Guild headquarters and returned to Hilderan for a private audience with the king.

“What exactly did they say?”

“They said the Guild would support the warriors.
But it is certainly not from pure intentions.”

“Because of Daphner Philian?”

“Yes.”

They intended to involve themselves in the Demon King subjugation to cover up Daphner’s death.

Normally, Hillen would have welcomed it.
He’d be sharing achievement with the Guild, yes—
but he was technically part of the Guild anyway.
And his fame had grown too large for the Guild to overshadow.

But the King of Hilderan was not seeking a warrior expedition.

It was not an offensive force—
but a rescue mission to retrieve the princess.

‘The Guild will want chess pieces to fight their war.
I have no intention of obeying them blindly.’

‘I am also an Argane of the Guild.’

‘Before that, you are a subject of Hilderan.’

‘Without the Guild’s help, we cannot rescue the princess.’

‘Then compromise—but never give them what they truly want.
Surely you have that much ability.’

Such was the conversation Hillen had exchanged with the king.
Their direction differed entirely from the Warrior Guild and the High Elder.

‘If it’s not a full expedition, I cannot provide full support.
What do you expect to accomplish with so little?’

‘An assault team the size of a warrior expedition?
For the sole purpose of rescuing the crown princess?’

‘I understand Hilderan’s anguish over losing the princess,
but I cannot devote major resources for that alone.’

‘And I hear you intend to join Jespine’s expedition as well.
We will speak again then.’

Thus, Hilderan’s request—relayed through Hillen—was rejected.

The Warrior Guild sought to restore honor and elevate Daphner’s death into glorious martyrdom through a full warrior expedition.

Hilderan sought only to rescue the princess while keeping distance from the larger conflict.

Their goals were parallel and irreconcilable.

“So there were no gains at all?”

“I brought the Red Hawk Assault Unit, along with twenty-one warriors.”

These were individuals who personally chose to follow Hillen.
They admired his fame and achievements—
and indeed, Hillen had visited the Guild headquarters mainly because of them.

Their numbers were not large, but their skill was high—
each one a valuable warrior.

“I will hire at least two hundred mercenaries.
And I will disguise the Azure Sea Knights and the Sea Dragon Mage Corps as mercenaries and attach them to you.”

“Will that be all right?”

There was a reason warrior expeditions favored warriors and mercenaries over national armies—
Countries often used expeditions as pretexts to send troops and then betray their allies.

For this reason, the Empire had used noble hostages and a formal alliance among the three northern kingdoms when searching for the Infernal Tower.

That was the only way to officially deploy troops.

“If we are caught, Hilderan will face major diplomatic trouble.”

“You are mistaken.
Did you think I would simply sit and wait after Ernan was kidnapped?”

Although he could not save Ernan right away, he prepared for the day the Tower would be discovered.

The secret pact with Korzen.

“Things are already settled with Korzen. Considering how much we handed over, receiving only a single knight order and a single mage order may seem small, but Hillen Cargill—if it’s you, that will be more than enough.”

“...I do not deny that they will be a great help.”

“I want a more definite answer.”

The King of Hilderan growled.

In truth, simply attaching one of the kingdom’s finest knight orders and one mage order to an assault force heading into another country was already enough to say he had done his part.

Hillen thought for a moment.

‘Honestly, rescuing the princess isn’t the issue.’

He could have gone alone. The Demon King, the princess, the Hero—everything had already been a fixed game played under the table.

But what was seen mattered. No matter how he was the Hero who had slain two Demon Kings, if people were told he entered a Demon King’s Tower alone and rescued the princess alone—how many would ever believe it?

They would suspect him first—wonder whether he was the Demon King’s underling who had betrayed humanity (which he actually was).

In that sense, more than forty Heroes and hundreds of troops were sufficient to look like an appropriate assault force.

If such an assault force were to “accidentally” find the princess on the first or second floor—who would question it?

Something strange?

That the Hero conspired with the Demon King?

Impossible.

Once is coincidence, but twice or thrice becomes inevitability.

After the Frost Demon King came the Adamantine Demon King, and after the Adamantine Demon King came the Flame Demon King. Even if they operated their Towers in exactly the same fashion, no one would find that strange.

‘And above all…’

He might have disguised himself as a mercenary, but that was just covering one’s eyes and pretending not to see. Since something had been exchanged with the Kingdom of Korzen, other nations’ intelligence networks would have caught it, and those who knew the difference between a hundred ordinary Heroes and a hundred elites would know.

Therefore—

“I will surely rescue Her Highness the Crown Princess.”

If he couldn’t dance properly atop a stage this perfectly arranged, then the name Hillen Cargill would be wasted.

***

The discovery of the Flame Tower did not simply excite the Hero Guild and a handful of nations including Hilderan.

The Empire held the most leadership and influence in dispatching the search parties.

And the Empire was delighted for a different reason.

Hilderan and Acan had failed, yet the Empire succeeded—this sense of superiority.

Especially since, although not official enemies, Acan constantly interfered with the Empire’s every move. Humbling Acan’s pride brought the Empire immense satisfaction.

The Empire widely publicized the achievements of its Third Prince, inspiring the people’s pride, superiority, and loyalty to the imperial family.

“I cannot fathom Father’s intentions.”

And the very man who achieved these accomplishments, upon leaving the Emperor’s audience, was drowning in distress.

“What troubles you?”

“At least pour me a cup of coffee first.”

“Here you are.”

Martin savored a sip. The bitter sting against his tongue helped calm him slightly.

“Do you remember how the black mage confessed his backer, and how the Empire’s response proceeded afterward?”

“Yes.”

“His Majesty says he will conquer the Flame Tower.”

“...Did he not say that since the Flame Demon King is unlikely to be the true mastermind, he would keep another Demon King in consideration? But since we cannot postpone finding the Flame Tower forever, he would use this opportunity to rally aid from other nations.”

“Yes, that was the plan.”

That had been Martin’s foundation of belief.

No matter that he was a prince and wielded some influence—if an imperial order was issued, he had no choice but to obey.

But the Emperor’s will was fixed solely on the true enemy, not the Flame Demon King; and knowing that nothing beyond the search party would escalate, he had been able to give the Demon King certain assurances.

At least until very recently.

“Did he say why he changed his mind?”

“Daphner Philian’s death. I understand his reaction. Until now, no Star-Class Hero had ever died during mere searches, nor had any Demon King ever raged in order to kill one. The Flame Demon King differs completely from every Demon King before him, and thus His Majesty does not want variables.”

But—

“But even though there’s a mastermind trying to drive the Empire into ruin, His Majesty insists on directly subjugating the Flame Demon King. I oppose it, frankly.”

If the Flame Demon King were defeated now, the single lifeline handed to Martin would be cut.

One might argue he could sever his ties with the Demon King and move on, but he had already given up far too much.

‘The imperial treasury sigil. And Kaede is in the Demon King’s hands. At the very least, until the day Kaede is freed from that contract, the Demon King must remain alive.’

He knew that when a Demon King died, its vassals were released. But would a Demon King cornered to death obediently release them?

And if the Empire was spearheading the assault, would Kaede—an imperial princess—be treated kindly? And would the Demon King quietly keep silent about the imperial treasury sigil?

No. Martin was certain the Demon King would not.

‘More importantly, I need his help to become Emperor.’

He did not expect much. But at least in some small ways, the Demon King’s help would matter—those small things would accumulate into the strength Martin needed to become Emperor.

He had to stop this. And if he could not stop it, he had to delay it as long as possible.

“I must see Brother Floyan.”

Martin rose from his seat.

***

Meanwhile, Berze had resolved to lay out a carpet for Hillen Cargill.

“The best outcome is to send Ernan as quickly as possible, pacify Hilderan, and begin preparations.”

The idea of putting legs on the Tower and moving it was something humans must never discover.

Because the process of attaching the legs would inevitably take place outside the Tower.

“You want to send me away that quickly?”

“Don’t be snide.”

“I’m joking.”

Ignoring Ernan’s strange smile, Berze continued.

“The ideal would be to throw the doors wide open, but that would draw suspicion. So we’ll hinder them—but only at a properly ‘appropriate’ level.”

“A show of effort.”

“Yes. Krutu.”

“Yes, my lord.”

“When they begin climbing the mountain, lure monsters to attack them. Not too many, and none excessively strong.”

“Yes.”

“And leave cross-shaped markers and directions along the shortest path to the Tower. I’ve already spoken with Hillen.”

“Yes.”

“And also…”

He issued several other essential instructions—from his lieutenant Gordon down to the low-ranking Furl Orcs.

Every member of the Tower steeled their resolve.

“There must be no failure in this operation. Failure means death. Remember that.”

“Yes!”

The members of the Tower roared with determination.

The Flame Tower had completed its preparations.

Except for a single person.

“You want me to turn the babies I created with my own hands into malfunctioning idiots!? Absolutely not!”

It was only the dwarf who had been ordered to downgrade the performance of the mana cannons to hand them over to the Golden Moon Merchant Guild.