【Expedition Slays a Dragon Instead of a Demon King!】

【Enormous Wings—Who Did They Belong To?】

The rumors began in the Kingdom of Horton. The expedition, which had entered Erjest through Hortonwork in the Kingdom of Korzen, had appeared in Hairin, in the Kingdom of Horton.

“It’s the expedition!”

“The expedition has returned!”

“Have they finally taken the Demon King’s head?”

Fear and hostility toward the Demon King of Hellfire were at their peak. The expedition’s delayed return had raised doubts, but everyone knew they were more than capable of killing a Demon King. Now, at last, they had returned. Naturally, people expected the Demon King to be dead.

But they had neither the Demon King’s head nor even any demonic creature remains.

“... What is that?”

In place of the trophies everyone expected, dozens of heroes were carrying something enormous overhead. A dragon’s wings. Its tail.

“... A dragon?”

“Not the Demon King?”

“A d-dragon slayer!”

“The great hero Balaf Dislord has slain a dragon!”

It was not the result those hoping for the Demon King’s death had wanted, but this was a dragon, of all things. A creature that existed, yet had not appeared in nearly a thousand years and was recorded almost exclusively in legends. Now its existence had been revealed—and a hero had brought it down.

“The wings alone were over twenty meters long!”

“And that tail! I hear an ordinary knight couldn’t even scratch its scales.”

“And they killed something like that?”

“But why only the wings and tail?”

“Who knows? It was probably too big to bring back anything else. What matters is that they killed it!”

“Long live the expedition!”

“Long live Balaf Dislord, the dragon slayer!”

From Hairin to all of Horton, from Horton to the Empire, and then across the continent, the rumors spread faster still. Because it was a dragon. Because fear and hostility toward the Demon King were at their height.

The Demon King of Hellfire had behaved nothing like the Demon Kings before him. He resembled the Demon King of a hundred years ago, but was stronger. Several hero’s journeys had failed to bring him down. Once could be chance, but twice, three times, meant something inevitable. To make matters worse, the massive attack on an imperial city had rekindled the long-forgotten fear of Demon Kings.

Yet now, in this moment, all of that vanished.

“If they killed a dragon, surely they won’t lose to some Demon King of Hellfire?”

“Of course not. It won’t be long before we see that damned bastard’s head!”

In the public’s eyes, dragons, which had vanished into legend, stood above Demon Kings, who had been slain countless times over the past thousand years. It made no sense that a hero who had killed a dragon could fail to kill a Demon King who had descended barely two years ago.

The fact that they had once again failed to find the Demon King’s tower was quickly buried beneath a swelling confidence that they could kill him whenever they found him. And now, the allied forces had joined hands to locate the tower. Thus, the humans of the continent were certain it would merely take a little more time. They felt reassured that Demon Kings stood beneath humanity.

* * *

“Was it truly a dragon?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Balaf had returned to the imperial capital to dazzling acclaim. After the emperor commended his accomplishments, he went straight to meet the First Prince.

“How did you come across a dragon?”

“We traveled all over the mountains looking for the Demon King’s tower. We searched the center first, then headed east.”

“So it wasn’t in that spot after all.”

“No.”

“Could the tower have been temporarily concealed by magic?”

“We followed the recording orb and spent a week searching that location. Not one of the nearly five hundred heroes sensed any demonic energy.”

“Hmm. Go on.”

“Afterward, we turned west and combed through the entire mountain.”

They had not escaped without losses. Naturally so—Erjest was treacherous terrain untouched by human hands. Blizzards raged nearly every day, and monsters descended on them, drawn by the scent of prey. But every member of the expedition was a hero, handpicked from among their peers. Four Stars, including Balaf Dislord, led the way. Wherever they went, they carved a trail of monster blood.

“We wandered Erjest like that for months.”

Even the strongest expedition, composed entirely of heroes, could not avoid casualties. Dozens of heroes died. Still, Balaf Dislord did not give up. Neither did the other Stars. With the Stars taking the lead, the heroes stifled their complaints and followed.

“Then we came upon a cave while seeking shelter from a blizzard.”

“And that was the dragon’s lair?”

“Correct. We set up camp intending to rest briefly, but the cave ran deeper than we expected. Then I sensed its presence.”

Its enormous body, over forty meters long, was a force of violence in itself. A truly great being rose to annihilate the intruders.

“A battle broke out. More than a hundred heroes died.”

They had lost more men in that single battle with the dragon than during their entire trek through the mountains.

“The fierce battle lasted all day. It was violent enough to reshape the surrounding terrain.”

“But you killed it. Truly, you are the strongest hero.”

“We did not kill it.”

“...?”

Rufus’s brow furrowed. Then what were those trophies? What was all that acclaim for a dragon slayer?

“It was powerful. We gained the upper hand. We severed its wings, stripped away its scales, and cut off its tail. However...”

“However, it wasn’t enough to finish it?”

“It was enough.”

“Then?”

“But we lacked the strength to stop it once it committed itself to fleeing.”

Its enormous body was practically a power in its own right, but dragons were also known as the masters of magic. They could not stop the dragon-tongue magic it unleashed in earnest, nor the dragon’s escape.

“We did inflict a fatal wound. I believe it died, but unless I see it for myself, I cannot tell you with certainty.”

Because it was a dragon.

“I thought something was strange.”

Had they truly slain a dragon, they would have brought back its head and heart, not just its tail and wings.

“Is there a reason you did not deny it?”

“It is probably the reason you already suspect, Your Highness.”

“Indeed, things have turned out as you intended.”

The fear of the Demon King that had been quietly taking hold had all but vanished. Dragons were greater than Demon Kings, and the hero who had slain that dragon was human. Thus, the Demon King no longer inspired fear. If they now admitted that they had not actually slain the dragon, public sentiment would reverse. The honor of Balaf and the other heroes would plummet.

“At any rate, this is not a bad thing.”

It was an opportunity. He had to capitalize on the expectation that a great hero who had slain even a dragon would surely finish off the Demon King of Hellfire once they found his tower. This renewed confidence would work quite well in tandem with the newly formed coalition.

“I would like to hear the specifics of your plan.”

“Dormund, Korzen, Horton, Akan, Ormus, Traparta, Iasin, Hilderan, Hessen, Machiel...”

He went on listing other nations.

“All of those nations have agreed to join the coalition. An allied force of at least a hundred thousand will head to Erjest and conduct an extensive search.”

Since they would be searching Erjest, their caliber would not be particularly low, either.

“The casualties will be heavy. Elite or not, this is Erjest.”

“We must accept that. Why else would the Empire choose not to shoulder the burden alone?”

The Empire was a beast that ordinarily refused to share its prey. But it was not foolish enough to take everything upon itself when the target was not even clearly in sight.

“Finding the tower is only a matter of time. I do not know what tricks the Demon King of Hellfire has used to survive this long, but so long as his tower is in Erjest, this ends here.”

“You are quite right.”

“So I ask you once more. Once we find the tower, will you lead the vanguard and bring me that damned Demon King’s head?”

Balaf bowed his head.

“Gladly.”

* * *

“This spot should do.”

Berge stood on a snowfield, surrounded by mountains.

Originally, he had intended to build the tower on the coast north of Erjest. It would be easier to receive support from the real tower there, and he would not have to worry about humans discovering it. Building it directly in the mountains because it was difficult to move, only to be found by humans bristling with fury, would be a disaster. But Logger’s assurances and the discovery of ore deposits had changed his mind.

With the Golden Moon Trading Company no longer able to provide a steady supply of materials, Berge had sent the dwarves to prospect for nearby ore deposits. The results had been spectacular.

“Yes. Erjest truly is paradise. Iron over there, copper over there, silver over there, and over there...”

Logger rattled off dozens of other ores. He said “over there,” but they were actually a fair distance away. What mattered was that all of them were available.

“There’s even that precious Carnian. I can’t wait to mine it.”

“Calm down. Didn’t he say he’d help us mine it once we finish the tower? More importantly, there’s mithril over there...”

“Never mind mithril. Over there...”

It was no wonder that all the dwarven craftsmen, not just Logger, were excited.

“You’re certain you can build the tower within a month?”

“Of course.”

“Even though it’s much bigger?”

“It’s only big and impressive on the outside. Structurally, it’s nothing more than a very lightweight building. You mustn’t compare it with the tower’s legs, which required advanced magical engineering. Besides, we can easily obtain materials from the nearby deposits...”

“I’ll trust you.”

“Yes! But, um...”

“Yes, this time I really will let you take the tower apart.”

“Really?”

“It’s not as though I’ve failed to keep my promise because I don’t want to. It’s because you still haven’t made the golems.”

“Isn’t that because you suddenly ordered me to make legs for the tower?”

“That’s why I’m saying I’ll allow it this time regardless of the golems.”

“I’ll finish it in three weeks, not a month!”

Logger exhaled forcefully through his nose.

“I look forward to it.”

After unloading all the supplies he had taken from the Golden Moon Trading Company, Berge surveyed his surroundings. It was a basin. Encircled by mountains, it was not easily visible from outside.

‘But...’

Ernyan had told him that the Empire’s coalition had been formed and that a large search force would come to Erjest. Given enough time, even this place would be discovered. The tower therefore had to be completed as quickly as possible, and they needed to keep a close watch on the surrounding area as a precaution.

‘Still, this is strange.’

Before his regression, Berge had been the very embodiment of a Demon King. He had never attended the Harmony of Towers, and he had maintained an aggressive stance, abducting princesses and princes. In the end, he had even destroyed several small nations and killed a Star. Yet until he abducted the Crown Prince, there had been no action on this scale.

‘What’s different?’

Strictly speaking, everything was different. But he felt he was overlooking something decisive.

‘Location.’

Thinking about it now, Berge had settled in an excellent location back then. He had simply erected his tower where he happened to land, but it had given him an enormous geographical advantage.

‘Now I see just how lucky I was.’

Compared with the continent’s heartlands, represented by Akan, Traparta, Hilderan, and Jespine, the southern alliance lay on the periphery. And Berge had settled even farther south than that alliance, in the remotest of backwaters, where dozens of small nations jostled for position. The sea separated it from other countries, while the southern alliance stood between it and the Empire, the dominant power.

‘Right. So they paid little attention, no matter how far I went.’

Heroes had come from time to time. There had been raiding parties and expeditions, too. But never a coalition on this scale, never Balaf Dislord or several Stars setting out together. Not even when he abducted dozens of princesses, raised an army of ten thousand, and destroyed several kingdoms. Not until he abducted the Empire’s Crown Prince.

‘They stood by and watched.’

Abducting princesses from small frontier nations, or destroying a few of those nations, had little effect on the major powers. That was why neither the Empire nor Akan nor the Heroes’ Guild had bothered to act. No, the Empire had probably welcomed it. The Demon King was taking care of those mosquito-like nuisances, destroying them one by one.

‘Perhaps...’

Wasn’t that the greatest reason Berge had been free to run wild, like a frog in a well, ignorant of the world beyond?

‘Disgusting.’

The more he knew, the more he could see. He now understood all too clearly how foolish his former self had been.

Clicking his tongue, Berge took out his communication orb.

‘I should meet with Krutu and tell him to make sure no humans get anywhere near the tower.’

Just then, before he could inject any demonic energy, the communication orb rang. It was Krutu.

『My lord!』

“What is it?”

『Well... I think you should come see for yourself.』

“I asked what it is.”

『A d-dragon!』