"Do you think you can get away with this?"

"That's right! Send us back!"

"You vicious bastards!"

"Please, spare us!"

Natalia Iasin and the Kingdom of Iasin's Second, Third, and Fourth Princesses could not come to terms with their situation. Just days ago, they had been in a detached palace on the royal grounds, enjoying elegant tea parties with nobles and expanding their influence in society and politics.

Then all of it had vanished in an instant.

Abducted. By the infamous Demon King of Hellfire, no less, and brought to the Tower of Hellfire.

The fact that the sisters had been abducted together offered no comfort.

Even more astonishing was the tower's interior. Instead of the horrific place teeming with demons and demonic creatures they had expected, there were spirits and elves. If not for the demons who occasionally came down, they would never have thought this was a Demon King's tower.

At first, they had assumed the others were prisoners like themselves. But they did not resist the demons. Instead, they cooperated with them to oppress Iasin's princesses. It was unbelievable, and their denial soon turned to anger.

"You traitors to humanity! Heaven will punish every last one of you! The tower's location is already known! Once the hero's journey begins, you won't—Aagh!"

"Natalia!"

SMACK!

Natalia's head snapped sideways. The blow was so hard that her lip split and blood ran down it.

"Y-you...!"

"You're noisy. Shut up."

"Do you have any idea who I am?"

"That's right! Do you know who we are?"

"Then do you bitches know who I am?"

BOOM!

An enormous battle-axe swept between Natalia and the other princesses. The deep gouge in the ground and the fragments striking their cheeks felt unreal.

"Think you're the only ones who've been abducted? Who do you little nobodies think you are, throwing your weight around?"

"I-I am Natalia Iasin, First Princess of the Kingdom of Iasin! How dare you swing an axe at—"

"And if you're Natalia Iasin, I'm Louise Berft, you bitch!"

"What?"

"Be sure to send word to the Kingdom of Berft later. Tell them their princess slapped your princess across the face, and demand they pay your medical bills!"

"... L-Louise Berft?"

"That's right. And the one watching us over there is the Jespine Empire's Ninth Princess, so send the Empire a bill too. Say she stood by while a princess got beaten!"

"K-Kaede Jespine too?"

"Now that you know, shut the fuck up. The weakest bitches have the loudest mouths. What a fucking nuisance."

Confronted with one eminent princess after another, Iasin's princesses fainted with their tongues lolling out.

"I'm trying to spar here. These pathetic little nuisances, honestly."

Louise clicked her tongue and raised her axe again.

"The distractions are out of the way. Again!"

"Don't you ever get tired?"

"Tired? I'm loving this. You have no idea how restless I got, shut away in that detached palace supposedly reflecting on my behavior."

"... Very well. Sparring with you benefits me too."

"But what did he abduct those girls for? Don't tell me he's going to make them swallow those strange orbs and put them to work too?"

"I believe my lord has a greater purpose in mind."

"You've become quite the loyal subject, haven't you? Are all knights like that? The emperor would be delighted to see you."

"The same could be said of you and the Kingdom of Berft."

"Hmph!"

Louise swung her axe, and Kaede met her attack. With the unconscious princesses set aside, their sparring continued until the girls woke up.

* * *

Though its First, Second, Third, and Fourth Princesses had been abducted, the Kingdom of Iasin did not immediately proclaim a hero's journey. It was so quiet that one might question whether four princesses really had been taken.

Unlike the silent royal family, however, the rumors grew louder, inevitably drawing at least some attention away from the Golden Moon Trading Company. Berge seized that opportunity to visit the company again.

"The materials?"

"I believe you'll need to make several more round trips."

"Then I will."

"There are quite a few problems, though," Aman said cautiously.

"Problems?"

"The sale of the Demon King's horn, and our discreet efforts to establish contacts with other trading companies to sell the mana cannons."

Quite apart from the Demon King's horn, mana cannons were strategic supplies prized by every nation. No country would simply sit back and watch a mere trading company manufacture and sell them.

"There's a limit to how far Lord Hillen's name can protect us. Some nobles in Iasin are even denouncing us as Hilderan's lackeys. The royal family is also making moves to bring us under its control. Your sudden abduction of the four princesses has weakened those efforts, but..."

It had only bought them a little time.

"That isn't a problem I can solve for you."

"For now, we're lobbying the nobles and holding out as best we can."

"What about moving the company to Hilderan?"

Ultimately, a powerful patron would solve the problem. With Crown Princess Ernyan's active support, there would be no trouble.

"Leaving behind our entire business foundation would be no different from abandoning the company itself."

"What a headache."

"Still, we aren't entirely without options."

"Explain."

"We could offer some mana cannons to the royal family and high-ranking nobles in exchange for their protection."

"Have you established any connections?"

"It cost a great deal, but fortunately, we've made contact with the Crown Prince."

"Wait. So, in the end..."

"Yes. We need more mana cannons."

"I'll bring more next time."

That was a hundred times better than letting the company collapse.

"Thank you!"

"But how will you explain the disappearance of the supplies?"

The golem materials Berge had requested were currently piled up in mountains. Their disappearance would inevitably raise questions, especially with so much scrutiny on the company now.

"We'll send dozens of freight wagons to a workshop owned by the company. The mana cannons you give us will then come out as the finished products, my lord."

Hundreds of mana cannons were no small quantity. They might plausibly account for a substantial portion of the supplies, but...

"The materials for mana cannons and golems are quite different."

There was some overlap, but plenty of materials were not shared.

"We can say some of them are being used for golem research. If we maintain strict security and claim the research consumed considerable resources, how could outsiders know otherwise?"

"And the executives? They think you're selling the materials, don't they?"

"As I mentioned before, I used Lord Hillen's name. They've followed my father for ten years, always putting the company first, so they all accepted it."

Officially, Hillen Cargill was the company's investor. Faced with the demands of a financier who held a substantial stake, the executives had naturally reached an agreement.

"Once they see mana cannons as the end product, they'll accept it. Of course, we may be exposed quickly, but this is our best option for now."

Hillen really was useful for everything.

'Letting him have Drakson was a good decision.'

Even Hillen Cargill could not have made all this possible if he hadn't finished Drakson off.

Berge gave a faint chuckle.

* * *

"... What do you mean?"

『I said the plan has changed. You have been excluded from the hero's journey entirely.』

Hillen could not understand it. It might sound like self-praise, but he was the only hero to have killed two Demon Kings. Most assessments held that he could overtake Balaf Dislord, who had long maintained his position as the strongest hero.

Yet he was being excluded, despite even having cultivated a relationship with the Third Prince?

"Has something happened?"

『I don't know the details either. His Majesty won't tell me. All I can say is that the plan to make this hero's journey a competition between us has fallen through.』

"You mean all the imperial royals..."

『Yes.』

Why the sudden change?

It did not fit the Empire's conduct so far. Hadn't the emperor been indifferent to everything since ascending the throne?

『I have the same questions you do. Asking me won't get you any answers.』

"I understand."

『Oh, that reminds me. I heard you distinguished yourself by rescuing Ernyan Hilderan.』

"Yes."

『How was it?』

"I'm not sure what you mean."

『I'm asking what the tower and the Demon King were like.』

"Ordinary. He kept the princess on the first floor, like the Demon King of Bitter Cold and the Adamant Demon King. For a Demon King who had given us so much trouble, I found him quite ordinary."

『Ordinary, you say. I see.』

Martin nodded.

『Understood. Though we cannot undertake the hero's journey together, and you are now the Hero of Hilderan, I believe our relationship won't end here.』

"Of course not. Even before rescuing Her Highness the Crown Princess, I climbed the mountains with you in search of the tower, Your Highness. I cannot forget that bond."

『Thank you. I'll contact you again.』

"Yes."

The connection ended.

On the other side of the crystal ball, the prince in the Jespine Empire snorted.

"Ordinary?"

A Demon King who had taken a kingdom's crown princess and an imperial princess as servants, and negotiated with him, an imperial prince?

"There's no way he's ordinary."

If so, this was a terribly dull, cheap little play.

"The Demon King used his head."

He had released Hilderan's Crown Princess to forestall an attack from Hilderan.

"Somehow..."

Martin had a strong feeling that the Demon King would survive this hero's journey too.

"Are you not going to ask about the Demon King's horn or the mana cannons?" asked Sir Carwol, who had been standing quietly behind him.

"The trading company is concealing everything. That means they don't want to talk. Would Hillen be any different? There's no need to touch a nerve and damage our relationship now."

"But these are hardly ordinary items, are they?"

"What does it matter? There are plenty of people besides me to pressure the Golden Moon Trading Company."

"That's true."

"Besides, the Empire isn't going to be frightened by a few mana cannons made by a mere trading company."

It was certainly surprising that a single trading company in a kingdom had acquired the technology to make mana cannons. But the Empire had more than a few workshops that, alongside Akan's, produced the finest mana cannons outside Berft.

It warranted attention, but there was no need to overreact.

"Still, I am curious how they obtained Carnal Desire's horn."

Unfortunately, he would not find out just yet.

* * *

After rescuing Ernyan Hilderan, Hillen Cargill's already blazing reputation truly exploded. Dozens of invitations to banquets and tea parties were the norm, and crowds of visitors came to his mansion every day.

But he did not indiscriminately attend every event or receive every visitor. He enjoyed meeting people, building relationships, and turning those connections into influence and power. Now that he had joined forces with Ernyan Hilderan, however, he could no longer associate with just anyone.

"This person and this person are fine. I think you can attend this banquet."

"I will."

"Oh, my illustrious older brother is hosting a banquet. What do you say? Shall we go to this one together? You can escort me, Lord Hillen."

"You have a rather cruel idea of fun."

"Do I? This is nothing to a snake coveting someone else's position."

Day by day, Hillen cultivated ties with the nobles Ernyan selected, while keeping his distance from the factions of the Second Prince and Duke Heinz. Just as everyone had come to regard his conduct as openly pro-Ernyan, the king summoned him.

"Welcome."

The king pushed his documents aside. An attendant brought tea.

"Have some."

"Thank you."

For a moment, only the quiet sounds of drinking tea filled the silence. The king was the first to break it.

"I hear you're the brightest rising star in society these days."

"That is far too generous."

"Even when every noble is desperate to form a connection with you? No, it isn't only the nobles. I hear my children are exceedingly fond of you."

"Perhaps because I rescued their sister, Her Highness Ernyan."

"Don't talk nonsense. If they wanted to steal you from her, that would be another matter."

"..."

The king chuckled. In truth, it was hardly surprising. As king, he could not possibly be ignorant of the relationships within the royal family.

What puzzled Hillen a little was that he knew and still stood by.

"Doesn't Your Majesty favor Her Highness Ernyan?"

"It goes beyond favor. Of all my children, Ernyan alone is fit to lead Hilderan."

"But..."

"But why do I stand by and let it happen? Is that what you want to challenge me about?"

"... That isn't what I meant."

"Of course it is."

The king gave a short chuckle, then spoke slowly.

"To make her strong."

"Strong?"

"Ernyan is the great queen who will turn Hilderan into an empire. If she cannot overcome petty opposition from her own family, how will she handle the politics and diplomacy of a great nation?"

"..."

Hillen could not understand the king's reasoning. But he thought he now understood why Ernyan Hilderan had become so twisted.

'In some ways, this is worse than the Empire.'

He almost laughed in disbelief, but kept it from showing.

"Seen in that light, her abduction to the Demon King's tower could even be called a blessing in disguise. One concern of mine was that life within a confined palace would leave her with a confined perspective. Now she has experienced the world."

What expression would he wear if he learned that this experience had turned the woman destined to be Hilderan's queen into one of the Demon King's Four Heavenly Kings?

Hillen felt an almost irresistible urge to tell him.

"Do you..."

Hillen struggled to keep his expression under control. The king's voice sank lower.

"Know why I'm telling you this?"

"..."

It was certainly odd. His deliberate refusal to intervene in the royal family's disputes was an embarrassing secret that could do him no good if it became public.

Hillen felt a strange sense of foreboding. The king's gaze grew more intent.

"... I'm afraid I don't."

"Then do you know why I summoned you?"

"Was it not about my activities in society?"

"It's true that I dislike heroes involving themselves in politics, but no, I'm afraid not. Surely you don't think I would summon a great hero over something so trivial."

"Then...?"

Cold sweat trickled down Hillen's skin.

"Do you know of a practice that was customary long ago? Back when Demon Kings' towers appeared, royals were abducted, and Demon Kings were still objects of terror. It was a very long time ago. Well over several hundred years."

"I'm not sure what you're referring to."

"Understandably so. It is a custom of a bygone age, entirely forgotten now."

A bygone age? A custom?

What was he trying to say that required such a lengthy preamble?

"In those days, humanity had yet to gain the upper hand over the Demon Kings. That was why they were so feared."

"I am aware."

"When such beings abducted royals, kingdoms were thrown into chaos. Kings sought to rescue their abducted kin by any means possible, but few were willing to step forward."

The standing of Demon Kings back then differed from their standing today, as did the number and strength of heroes.

"Those who risked their lives to venture into a Demon King's tower needed a suitable reward. And to prevent another abduction, a trustworthy, powerful protector needed to stay by the rescued royal's side."

Surely not.

One possibility flashed through Hillen's mind.

"A hero who broke through a Demon King's tower and rescued a royal—what better choice could there be?"

Surely, surely not.

"What do you think?"

"... So what you're saying is..."

Hillen swallowed hard. He prayed, and prayed again, that he was wrong.

"Yes. How would you like to become engaged to Ernyan? A union between Hilderan's Crown Princess and the hero who saved her. Could anything be more beautiful? And you seem to have grown close since you rescued her."

But God had abandoned him.

"..."

Good heavens.

In Hillen's mind, he saw himself being murdered by Berge.