Chapter 149

A sharp pain throbbed in Logar’s head as he opened his eyes.

Glowing red eyes stared at him from the darkness. His breath hitched on its own. A chill ran down his spine.

“Y–Your Highness!”

“If you’re awake, stand up.”

“I–I’m up!”

“Attention.”

“Attention!”

“What should I do with you?”

Logar desperately worked his mind.

Louise had been kidnapped by the Demon King. For her to be casually talking with him on the second floor of the tower meant…

She was persuaded by the Demon King?

Like the other princesses?

How? He should be the Flame Demon King, not the Swindler Demon King!

“Ahaha… You heard everything, didn’t you? I didn’t actually run away from Your Highness, I was… kidnapped…”

“Yes, so I heard. No wonder no one could find you, since you were hiding up here, right?”

“O–of course! My desire to return to Your Highness was burning hotter than anything, but that wicked Demon King just wouldn’t let me go…”

“So that’s why you refused to make anything for a troublemaker like me?”

“I–I swear, I never said such a thing!”

Louise snorted. But that wasn’t what mattered.

“To be honest, when I think of all the trouble you caused me, I want to kill you right now.”

“H–Hiiik…! Everything is the Demon King’s fault! I am innocent!”

“Is that so?”

“I am completely innocent!”

“And what about the humiliation you gave me when you came back to the workshop with the Demon King?”

“I–I didn’t do anything then!”

“You said ‘knife.’ While I was fighting the Demon King. Everyone looked, and thanks to that distraction I got hit properly by him. If not for that, none of this would have happened!”

The Demon King wouldn’t have escaped, and you would’ve been back in my grasp.

“There was a bomb strapped to my neck at the time!”

“And? Having a bomb excuses you from throwing the princess you served into danger?”

“O–of course that’s not what I meant… A–and it wasn’t a knife… It was an axe… It only looked like a knife mid-swing…”

By the end, his voice was so small it was nearly inaudible.

“Does that matter?”

“…It does not.”

Smack—

Logar flew through the air. He bounced dozens of meters before crashing into a wall.

“Gyaaaagh!”

He rolled across the floor.

“Stop whining and get up.”

“Yes ma’am!”

It wasn’t whining. The killing intent pouring out of her in real time was simply far more terrifying.

Louise casually dusted off her hands.

“If the Demon King hadn’t told me to leave you intact, it would’ve ended here.”

“Thank you!”

“Anyway, from now on, your job is simple. Convince them.”

Logar followed her gesture. At its end stood forty-nine frozen statues.

“Because for now, I’m stuck on the same ship as you.”

“Wouldn’t they obey if Your Highness just, uh… told them to?”

If they didn’t want to die, obviously.

“They’d pretend to obey. But that’s all, isn’t it? I need them to do their best. Otherwise, I can’t face the Demon King.”

After all, she couldn’t escape the ten-year contract.

And besides, the craftsmen’s loyalty wasn’t to Louise. It was to the king—and her older brother.

“Drive them insane.”

“With the golem?”

“Yes, with that amazing blueprint of yours.”

Nothing motivated dwarf craftsmen more than showing them how incredible the thing they’d build would be.

“Well, that was one method I had considered, but…”

“Why the hesitation?”

“If I’m going to lead them… I have been in the tower the longest…”

“That’s your problem to figure out.”

“Yes!”

Logar nodded vigorously.

***

『I’m disappointed. How could you do this?』

When Berze sent Ernan back to Hilderan, he gave him a communication orb. He didn’t expect a response this quickly.

And such nonsense, at that.

“What are you talking about?”

『I asked you to take care of the Four Heavenly Kings for me. And you said you would.』

“So?”

『Then why is it Louise Verft?』

“Wait—how did you hear about that?”

『Isn’t it obvious the Four Heavenly Kings stay in contact with each other?』

…Really now.

“Fine, let’s pretend that makes sense. So what’s the problem?”

『There are many problems. The Four Heavenly King I requested was clearly the Giant of Hell.』

“Right, which is why you asked me to save the body-type princess. Louise Verft’s physical power is top-tier. She could devour most heroes, not just princesses.”

『I know that. But Louise Verft is tiny! She’s not the Giant of Hell—she’s the Midget of Hell!』

“If you said that in front of her, she’d throw an axe at your head.”

『No, she’d like it. Dwarves consider being small a virtue.』

“That’s information I didn’t want. I’m hanging up.”

『Ah—wait, Demon King, just—』

Unbelievable.

Berze clicked his tongue and moved on to his next task.

Most of the urgent matters had been handled.

The craftsmen had been fully secured, and all the materials stored on the upper floor had also been retrieved. He had even sent valuable byproducts to Jetoson, so they should be able to acquire whatever they needed.

Now the problem is…

Vivian Blunt.

The disgraceful Demon King who threw away all dignity and pride just to survive.

A retainer, huh.

When she contacted him, he was ready to accept her request. He thought there was no real downside.

But the more he thought about it, the more problems surfaced one by one.

If it were only about Arein itself, there wouldn’t be much of an issue.

Accepting a Demon King who was already doomed to die as a retainer wasn’t really a stain on anything.

The only shocking part was that the subject was another Demon King. Demons taking demons as retainers was nothing unusual.

And Vivian has already spread word to the other Demon Kings.

Vivian was seen as a strange demon anyway. There was no reason blame would fall on Berze.

But outside of Arein, things changed.

The tower.

And the position known as Demon King.

What happens to the tower when the Demon King who controls it becomes someone else’s retainer?

And what happens to the Demon King’s official status?

A Demon King wasn’t just a demon. They were officially dispatched vanguards and commanders assigned to lower dimensions by the Demon Realm.

If Berze accepted Vivian Blunt as a retainer—even voluntarily—would Archduke Argane really sit still?

There’s actually no official rule that prevents a demon from voluntarily becoming another demon’s retainer…

The problem was that Berze had already been firmly branded a troublemaker by Archduke Argane. If Argane found even the slightest excuse, he would latch on like his life depended on it.

Well, Argane has no way of knowing if I make her a retainer.

The real problem was the tower. Whether a Demon King lived or died was determined by whether the tower returned to the Demon Realm.

The higher-ups would assume the Demon King was dead once the tower returned.

Meaning—the issue was whether the tower would remain or be recalled if Vivian became his retainer.

If it stays, that’s a problem. If it returns, that’s also a problem.

The more he thought about it, the more uncertain he became.

Still, I should at least check.

Demons considered double-speaking a respectable virtue, but after swearing on the First Demon Emperor and the sacred code, he at least needed to pretend to try.

If Vivian spread unnecessary rumors before dying, his reputation among the Demon Kings would plummet and relationships would sour.

Especially with Reina Sordain, who valued honor above all.

***

“Welcome!”

The Tower of Lust was built on one of the countless uninhabited islands of the Seratin Archipelago, more commonly known as the Pirate Isles.

Not that it was well hidden between islands—it was in a strangely in-between location.

He had heard they struggled heavily when an assault force attacked, but now the place looked relatively tidy.

Succubi, incubi, a few vampires, and the rest are all monsters…

And among them, especially many succubi.

Following Vivian, who greeted him at the entrance, Berze arrived at the office on the fifth floor.

“…What are you doing?”

The moment they were alone, the slightly excited-looking Vivian dropped to her knees.

“Hurry and take me as your retainer.”

“I haven’t said I’d accept you as a retainer yet.”

“What? Are you saying you’ll break a vow sworn on the First Demon Emperor and the sacred code?”

“I only promised that I would come to your tower. And look—I kept that promise.”

“My subordinates and I could be very useful to you.”

“Maybe.”

Succubi and incubi shone in espionage rather than combat.

Using their beautiful or handsome appearances, they naturally approached targets through seduction, luring information out with sticky temptation.

Demons whose entire profession was seduction were like a swamp—once you fell in, escaping was nearly impossible.

But that only applied in other dimensions.

Dimensions where heroes were rare and encounters infrequent.

The reason Vivian had fallen this far was ultimately because she couldn’t use the strength of succubi at all.

Not when there were over three thousand heroes, with more appearing in real time.

“And now you’ve changed your mind?”

“It’s not like I made up my mind clearly to begin with.”

“I—I bared my heart and everything inside it to you!”

“That’s why I came. There’s one thing I want to confirm.”

“Confirm?”

“Let’s go outside first.”

Berze walked out before Vivian could respond.

“What are you trying to do?”

“If I am to take you as my retainer, there are two obstacles.”

“Right. Your will and my will. But since both are set, haven’t we already passed those?”

“Your head is a flower garden.”

“Hey, you’re insulting me, aren’t you?”

“One obstacle is the other Demon Kings. The other is the higher-ups, including Archduke Argane.”

“Why would it matter if I want to be your retainer?”

“You might not care. But the problem is the tower. If you, its Demon King, become my retainer—what happens to the tower?”

“I don’t think anything would change.”

“No change?”

“Becoming a retainer doesn’t make me not a Demon King.”

“……”

She had a point.

Still, it wouldn’t hurt to check.

Berze approached the throne. The seat prepared for the master of the tower. He moved to sit.

─!

A fierce repulsive force shoved him away.

[Unauthorized individuals cannot approach the throne.]

A warning message flashed through his head.

“So this is what it feels like.”

Blocking another Demon King from accessing the throne was the most basic security system.

Berze pressed against the repulsion with demonic energy, forcing himself into the seat. He closed his eyes and reached into the tower system.

[Warning! Unauthorized entity attempting to infiltrate tower system!]

[Warning! Activating defense mechanism.]

Instantly—

Kugugugu—

The tower shook. A stronger force slammed into Berze’s body.

[Destroying intruder’s mind.]

Gugh—

Berze spat blood and pulled himself away from the throne.

Had he not withdrawn, the enraged demonic energy boring into his skull would’ve burned his brain alive.

“I—I don’t know what you were trying to do, but maybe don’t.”

“…First sensible thing you’ve said.”

“And if you want to check how the tower system works, shouldn’t you do it on your tower instead of messing with mine?”

“……”

…Oh?

***

Right.

Every Demon King had a tower, and Berze could check his own tower’s system freely.

Why didn’t I think of that?

A small excuse: he had been too focused on Vivian Blunt and her tower.

[Access denied.]

Most of the tower’s authority functions were hidden.

But thankfully, he found the part he needed.

Whether the tower was recalled to the Demon Realm was one of the most basic systems.

If the Demon King does not die, the tower will not be recalled to the Demon Realm.

If the tower’s core receives a certain level of impact, the tower will be forcibly recalled.

So even if Vivian became Berze’s retainer, her tower would not go back to the Demon Realm.

And even if she didn’t die, if humans attacked the tower strongly enough, it could still return.

There simply hadn’t been such a case until now.

Then the tower will remain, and even if Vivian leaves the tower empty, no major problem will occur.

Vivian would officially be considered dead and forced into hiding, but that wasn’t Berze’s concern.

With that settled, Berze returned to the Tower of Lust and decided to accept Vivian.

“That’s a great idea!”

“I won’t tolerate that arrogant tone anymore.”

“I am still a Demon King.”

“You’re my retainer now.”

“…Still a Demon King.”

“Whatever. Kneel.”

Vivian knelt and bowed her head. Berze placed his hand on top of her head.

A massive surge of demonic energy roared forth.

It tore through flesh, through mana—through something deeper, the very essence.

Berze’s demonic energy ripped through Vivian’s body, devouring her mana and revealing its savagery.

Vivian did not resist.

And then—

“Ghhh…!”

A searing pain like her brain was burning forced a groan from her throat.

A retainer contract between demons was the subjugation of the soul.

Even without conscious resistance, the stronger the demon, the higher the level of the soul—and naturally, the stronger the instinctive rejection.

A living being’s instinct was to crave freedom. The shock and pain of suppressing that instinct had to be endured entirely by the retainer.

After a long while—

“Puh-aah…!”

When the final sigil was carved, she finally exhaled the breath she had been holding.

The shackles of the soul bound Vivian tightly.

A wave of soul-power rippled throughout the tower.

Her retainers would feel it too—that above their master, a far greater Demon King had now appeared.

The tower did not change. Fortunately, the system information Berze had found earlier was correct.

“Do you regret it?”

“It’s better than dying.”

“I was told a dignified death is also a Demon King’s virtue.”

“Serving my lord well is the true virtue of a retainer. So… how about tonight?”

Vivian radiated sultry charm. Berze’s brow twitched.

“Don’t try that nonsense.”

“A succubus using her specialty is nonsense? Now that I’m your retainer, what’s wrong with doing my best?”

“I have no interest in a half-wit without horns or a tail.”

“T–That’s…!”

She almost blurted out You’re the one who asked me to remove them! but she held her tongue. She was no longer an equal Demon King.

Berze ignored the furious Vivian gnashing her teeth internally and approached the throne.

He was simply curious.

The tower had rejected him for lacking authority—so now that he returned as the master of its master, how would it react?

[Warning! Unauthorized—error.]

The mechanical voice cut off abruptly. The tower shook violently. Then a reversed announcement echoed out.

[Recognition – Berze Deias –]

[Master of the tower – Vivian Blunt – has been subordinated to a superior entity – Berze Deias.]

[You are now the master of another tower as well.]

[Conditions satisfied.]

[Two towers are resonating. The tower of – Vivian Blunt – will be integrated under the superior entity – Berze Deias.]

[- Berze Deias – may now absorb – Vivian Blunt –’s tower.]

[Proceed with absorption?]

“……?”

What am I supposed to do?