Only after finishing every urgent task did Berge finally have a moment to spare. At last, he headed to the prison holding the nemesis he had longed to kill—the man who had killed him.

Deep within the dark, damp prison sat Balaf Dislord. No, Daniel Deirus. Each of his limbs was bound separately, with restraints connected to his neck and torso. He was immobilized completely, unable to make even the slightest movement.

'Hmm.'

Berge checked the recording orb installed to one side. He had been watching Daniel through it from his throne, but seeing him in person was another matter entirely. The man's haggard appearance after being left unattended for over a week brought a smile to his face.

"How should I mock you so that people praise how well I did it? How should I ridicule you and make you feel like shit?"

How could he repay every humiliation he had suffered back then?

"..."

Daniel reacted. He raised his head, and their eyes met. Even after a week of neglect, the fire in his eyes had not died.

Berge liked that all the more. The hero who had killed him was not some piece of trash whose resolve crumbled at the smallest crisis. At least he had not fallen to a weak-ass son of a bitch. That offered a little comfort.

"You certainly put effort into spouting nonsense."

"Yes, you wouldn't understand as you are now. But that doesn't matter. I know, and I'm enjoying myself. By the way, what should I call you now?"

Balaf Dislord? Or Daniel Deirus?

"Which would you prefer? I'll indulge you."

"... Do you think you've won?"

"I don't think I've won. I have won. You're locked in this freezing prison like a criminal, while I've crushed every hero and claimed victory."

"... I'll admit you're powerful. But in the end, you won't get what you want either."

"It seems you have something to rely on."

Could it be...

"Jason Cockmundo?"

"..."

"But did you know? Among the heroes who came with you, daring to take my head, one already knew your identity. Who do you suppose it was?"

"... What?"

For the first time, Daniel's expression twisted.

"Didn't someone suddenly join the hero's journey when you hadn't expected him to participate?"

"Pablo Barkat...!"

"He told me that Balaf Dislord was actually the Guildmaster."

And that the Guildmaster was a hero named Daniel Deirus, who had disappeared centuries ago.

"How do you suppose he knew who you were?"

"... That bastard Jason actually did it!"

Daniel ground his teeth.

"It's very strange. Haven't you and Jason been allies for quite a long time? Yet he tried to stab you in the back like this."

"Hmph. It wasn't entirely unexpected. A trustworthy alliance between demons and humans was never possible in the first place. Betrayal and backstabbing are your specialties, aren't they?"

"Which means you didn't fully trust Jason either, and were taking precautions."

"..."

"The moment I learned who you were, I had so many questions."

How had he come to wield the Red Dragon Sword? What was his identity as the Guildmaster, and what was his identity as Balaf Dislord? What exactly had happened after he disappeared with the tower centuries ago?

"Before that, I wondered how a mere hero could be so strong, but fortunately, that question has been answered."

He must have killed quite a few Demon Kings over the centuries he had lived.

"But now I have other questions. Especially about that..."

Shell.

"That outer shell of yours, so perfect that no one noticed."

"Do you think I'll tell you?"

"Jason probably helped you. But I can't begin to guess exactly how."

Berge strode forward, swiftly closing the distance between them, and seized Daniel's shoulder.

"... Are you planning to torture me? Is that all?"

"Don't worry. This is something different from torture. Though it will hurt."

"What?"

"I've given it some thought. You were already using a shell to hide your identity. In that case..."

Could the shell he was wearing now truly be called his real appearance?

"What?"

"However many centuries have passed, you were the most famous hero on the continent, and you disappeared after being declared its public enemy. There must still be records of you. Yet while you were Guildmaster, not one person identified you as Daniel Deirus, did they?"

If anyone had, he would have been ousted as Guildmaster and declared a public enemy long ago.

That left only one answer.

"You have more than one shell."

And his present appearance was not his true one either.

"I'm going to test that now."

Berge tightened his grip. An enormous mass of demonic energy writhed and pierced the hero's defenses.

"Aaaaaaaargh!"

Daniel Deirus screamed in agony. His suffering was Berge's joy, but for now, Berge focused on something else.

Then—!

Berge's fingers met a fierce repulsive force. With all Daniel's mana and power suppressed, that should ordinarily have been impossible. It only strengthened Berge's conviction.

"Just how many layers does your shell have?"

Berge applied even more force. Daniel's howls grew louder in proportion.

"Only one?"

He had expected dozens, but there had been only a single shell. Unlike the previous one, peeling it away had not even released any hidden power.

"This one only conceals your appearance."

Compared with the Balaf Dislord shell, it was crude. Still, as long as he did not reveal his power, it could conceal his identity almost perfectly.

"Surely you haven't spent centuries living with just these two. Did Jason supply you with replacements periodically?"

He probably had. That must have been one way Jason kept him under control.

"So that's your real face?"

The man's face was sharper and fiercer than either Balaf Dislord's or the Guildmaster's. His black hair and eyes, however, remained unchanged.

"Since you'd lived for centuries, I thought you might be an elf. Apparently not."

Did killing dozens of Demon Kings extend one's lifespan? Or had he transcended human limits?

Berge suppressed an inexplicable urge to laugh. He had no idea why Ernyan came to mind.

"... You son of a bitch!"

"Yes, that's the look. That's what I wanted to see in your eyes. That's exactly what I wanted to see!"

Seething rage, steeped in venomous resentment.

"Isn't it exquisite?"

This was the fury of a hero who had lived for centuries and killed who knew how many Demon Kings. How sweet it was.

"So what exactly is this shell?"

Berge handled the fragments that had come off Daniel. They crumbled under even the lightest pressure.

"... Do you think I'll tell you?"

Daniel Deirus drooled from the pain, but the fire in his eyes remained alive.

"It would be better for you to talk, wouldn't it?"

"Your bullshit won't work."

"You must already suspect that Jason tried to betray you."

"..."

"As you know, I'm Jason's enemy too. They say the enemy of my enemy is my friend, don't they?"

"I cannot be friends with a Demon King."

"But surely a little cooperation for the sake of revenge is possible."

Since he had already been captured, shouldn't he at least get his revenge?

"Still, you were once called a god. If you wish to show mercy and meekly die after being used, I won't stop you."

"You seem to be the Demon King of Running Your Mouth, not Hellfire."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Spare my life."

"Do you think that's possible?"

"I'll give up an arm. In return, spare my life, and I'll tell you everything you want to know."

"I didn't realize you were so good at spouting nonsense too."

"Jason betrayed me, but you've humiliated and shamed me repeatedly. To me, there's little difference between the two of you. Without a guarantee that I'll survive, I have no reason to spill everything just to benefit you."

Daniel growled. Though all his mana and power were suppressed, his presence was indeed that of a hero who had lived for centuries.

"Choose."

Would he kill Daniel and let Jason have his way with him? Or spare Daniel and deal Jason a blow?

"A word of advice: without my help, you cannot defeat Jason. You don't know what kind of monster he is."

"Well, I believe I know him better than you do, at least."

"Do you? Then tell me."

Daniel sneered.

"Do you know how he's survived for centuries?"

"What?"

Centuries?

"Not one hundred years?"

"Heh heh. See? You know nothing about Jason!"

Daniel burst into wild laughter.

"Now, what will you do? Spare me and hear what you want to know? Or kill me and leave everything shrouded in mystery?"

Choose.

The eyes of the hero once called a god gleamed with desperation.

"Aina, can you believe it?"

Broken glasses littered the room, but Aina Sermyun could not think of cleaning them up as she normally would.

Something was different. Today, Jason was filled with more anger and hatred than usual. He was like a volcano that would erupt the moment anyone touched it.

"Reina Sordein has supposedly become Berge's servant. Vivian Blunt too."

Moments earlier, the demonic dragon summoned to oppose Berge had contacted him.

"Apparently, he used dwarves to build mana cannons. He commanded a spirit king's contractor."

He chuckled darkly.

"And with them, he repelled the hero's journey. He even..."

He let out a self-mocking laugh.

"Killed Balaf Dislord, they say."

His hair fell into disarray.

"So easily. To think everything I've done over the centuries could be invalidated so easily. I must truly be a fool."

He had failed to accomplish what Berge had managed in a mere two years.

"... That isn't true."

"No. I was foolish enough never to consider taking other Demon Kings as servants. I never considered taking the royals I abducted as servants."

His voice rose.

"Drakson Doldorf! Ugar Belbek! Reina Sordein! If I'd made them my servants! If I'd made every abducted royal my servant too!"

If he truly had...

"I would have conquered the continent long ago, with power to spare. Wouldn't I?"

"That would have been impossible."

"Impossible? Why would it be impossible? Hasn't Lord Berge demonstrated it? Hasn't that fucking son of a bitch shown us how!"

CRASH!

The table made of fine hardwood split into hundreds of pieces.

"Those damned demonic dragons! Demonic dragons! Demonic dragons! After all the havoc they caused in the Demon Realm, they interfere with me here too! Those worthless bastards, born with everything, with heads they use only as ornaments!"

"They ruin my plans! Overturn everything I've set up and rebel against me!"

"What? Give you more demonic energy so you can lift more of the interference? I deliberately concealed Berge's abilities?"

BOOM!

A sea of blood rose and swept through the office. Lightning struck, and blades of wind carved through everything.

"Those worthless demonic dragons!"

"Worthless blights who live only because they were born, who don't even deserve to exist!"

Everything in the office was smashed to pieces. Only two remained standing unscathed: Jason Cockmundo and Aina Sermyun.

"... I've made an unseemly spectacle of myself."

"It's all right. Let me straighten you up."

Aina smoothed Jason's disheveled hair and adjusted his clothes.

"What do you plan to do now?"

"Balaf Dislord was a key I spent a very long time preparing."

"I don't know all the details."

"He was humanity's hope—and despair—whom I cultivated for centuries."

Jason had fed him Demon Kings and supported him financially, enabling him to gain power and renown.

He hated every demonic dragon in existence, along with the Guide they had created. But the Guide was a reliable means of gaining more demonic energy and negative emotions, and he did not deny its practical value.

"The greater the hope, the greater the despair. That was what Lord Daniel Deirus represented. But he caught on and kept concealing his identity, so for the time being, I played along."

He had not needed him yet at the time. But that had gone on for far too long.

By now, he had abandoned that plan. His cooperation with Daniel Deirus had become too precious to do without. Rather than rashly aim for a major gain and discard him, Jason had decided it was better to cooperate and slowly build toward the outcome he wanted, however long it took.

That was what he had thought—until a demonic dragon appeared and ruined everything.

"Heroes are no longer of any use."

Daniel Deirus, his strongest card, had been defeated. Hillen Cargill, the next most promising prospect, was instead Berge's chess piece.

"Even so, I believe we must gather powerful individuals to match the two Demon Kings and Four Heavenly Kings Lord Berge has recruited, and counter him. More thoroughly this time."

"But heroes are no longer..."

"But there is another approach, isn't there? The one Lord Berge showed us."

"... Surely you don't mean..."

Aina was appalled.

"If you do that, there will be no turning back."

"No. Lord Berge has taken Lady Vivian and Lady Reina as servants, yet it hasn't caused him any trouble so far. His connection to the Demon Realm was severed solely because I told them about Lord Drakson's death. Which means..."

Grand Duke Alkain was less capable than Jason had thought. More precisely, his ability to monitor and intervene in the dimension he oversaw from the Demon Realm was lacking.

On reflection, that was only natural. With the thick dimensional barrier in the way, it would have been stranger if everything went smoothly.

"I'll invite Lord Dorche to my tower."

As for the pretext...

"He's conveniently provided one himself. I'll say I'll give him the demonic energy points, but since I feel unfairly accused, I'd like to hear a more detailed account of that day."

He could hardly wait to see that insolent demonic dragon's face again.

Jason regained his usual smile.