13 Missing 3
"The Kingdom of Hilderan has been overturned."
"A gutsy bastard, isn't he."
Crunch—
Draxon took a massive bite out of a slab of red meat, blood dripping from it.
"I told him to kidnap a princess, and he kidnapped Hilderan's princess. The crown princess, at that. What do you think that means?"
"It is proof that he is arrogant and foolish,"
his adjutant, Casey, concluded.
"Your reasoning?"
"First, he dared insult the Canon at the Demon King Academy graduation ceremony. Second, he bared his fangs at you, my lord. And third, in his overflowing confidence, he did not even properly investigate Arein. He is so blinded by confidence that he cannot see his surroundings."
"I thought the brat wouldn't follow the Canon. Yet he obeyed it faithfully by kidnapping the crown princess. How should I interpret that?"
He never imagined the boy would actually abduct a princess—much less the crown princess, the one with the highest line of succession.
"For an ordinary demon king, that might make sense. But this brat treated the Canon like trash. Does it make sense that he's following it more faithfully than anyone?"
"But he broke the other parts. His tower is in a brutal land forbidden to humans, and he chose a far kingdom instead of one close to his own."
"I can't make sense of him."
Crunch—
Draxon irritably chewed on the bare bone.
"But I believe his desire to follow the Canon is stronger."
"Reason?"
"Because aside from his adjutant, he has nothing. So he's following the Canon in the safest way for his circumstances."
Even for newly descended newcomers, there was normally at least a sliver of possibility. But Berze had none.
"Adjusting to the situation?"
"He has no soldiers, so he built his tower on Mount Ergest to minimize conflict. But he still wanted to follow the Canon, so he kidnapped the crown princess."
"He's the brat who mocked the Canon at graduation. Don't forget that. But everything he's done since descending to Arein fits your explanation well."
"Pretending to hate the Canon while loving it more than anyone—that would make him insane, wouldn't it?"
"A lunatic?"
The demon king and adjutant fell silent. After a moment, the demon king spoke again.
"Let's contact him first. He's done well so far, so we should at least praise him a little."
And probe his intentions while we're at it.
I first sensed something wrong because the amount of mana being converted into points through the tower was far too large.
[13219pt]
…?
I rubbed my eyes. The number didn't change.
Why?
For kidnapping a princess the king didn't even care about—a useless illegitimate princess—this was too much.
"My lord. A communication from Demon King Draxon."
"Again?"
Draxon's contact came then.
『I contacted you to congratulate you. We parted on bad terms, but as your senior demon king, I should at least acknowledge this much.』
『You hated the Canon, yet you follow it so faithfully. Even if double-faced behavior is considered a fine demon virtue, you've surpassed mere 'fine.' You fooled me completely, didn't you?』
"What nonsense is he talking about?"
『Still pretending to play dumb, eh? If you want, I won't dig further.』
"Has eating raw meat rotted your brain? I asked what the hell you're talking about."
『Is there any reason to hide it so desperately? Well, fine. If you insist, I'll say it myself.』
『I don't like you, but I am impressed with your achievement. I knew you said it was already part of your plan, but I never imagined you would bring back the crown princess of Hilderan.』
…Crown princess?
『I don't know whether it was premeditated or a whim, but good luck. If you succeed, all demon kings benefit, do we not?』
The crystal sphere dimmed.
"…"
And I was left speechless.
What did I just hear?
Crown princess? Not the 13th princess?
A heavy premonition raced through my mind. The back of my neck prickled.
When I came to my senses, I was already sprinting toward the 4th floor.
'Impossible.'
I brought back the princess from the 13th princess's palace.
There had been no one around, befitting the reputation of a neglected illegitimate child even the king ignored.
She wasn't even a knight or a magician.
'The crown princess is a spirit summoner.'
The southern kingdoms—including Hilderan—weren't my active region. But the crown princess of Hilderan was famous.
A genius spirit summoner who, at a young age, contracted with four elemental spirits.
Hilderan adored her to the point of insanity. No demon king dared touch her.
So it was impossible.
If she were the crown princess, she would have held immense mana.
If she were the crown princess, she would have been surrounded by guards.
If she were the crown princess, she would never have been in the 13th princess's chamber.
I clung to such rationalizations—until I set foot on the 4th floor.
And found something that should not exist.
There was a "wall."
A dirt wall blocking the empty corner where nothing should be. And a "spirit" tapping on it.
A hollow laugh escaped.
"You're here?"
Perfect timing—the earthen door opened. The princess stepped out naturally, disheveled but beautiful.
I pushed past her and entered.
Earthen bed, earthen furniture, earthen chairs. Nothing a powerless 13th princess could possibly create.
The traces of spirits were obvious.
Worse—
'…She is overflowing with mana.'
Until I brought her here, she had none. Now it prickled my skin.
"…What are you?"
"I don't understand the question."
"13th princess."
I glared at her.
"…You are not."
"Of course I'm not Elena."
That brief exchange shattered my last hope. Her eyes widened.
"Did you… mistake me for Elena…?"
"Your name."
"Ernan Hilderan."
The 1st princess. The very crown princess renowned in my past life.
"Why are you here?"
"Because you kidnapped me."
The wrong question.
"That place wasn't the 13th princess's palace?"
"It was."
"Then why were you there?"
"Is that important?"
It is. Very much so.
"So I asked you earlier. Whether you could handle kidnapping me."
She had. Why hadn't I questioned her arrogance then? Why hadn't I confirmed her identity?
"No wonder it felt strange. So it was just a mistake? Well, even demon kings, no matter how mad, never touch royal heirs."
She gave a bitter smile.
"So? Will you return me now?"
Her smooth assumption pricked my pride.
"Horseshit."
She clearly believed I would send her back.
That I, who once toppled kingdoms and achieved feats no demon king ever had, was frightened.
"Yes, I intended to kidnap the 13th princess. But replacing her with you doesn't change much."
A mere human dared assume I was afraid?
'I am not afraid.'
I am simply retreating a step. For a greater stride.
She didn't speak, but her strange gaze annoyed me.
"I will not return you."
So I made it clear.
'Hilderan and Ergest are opposites.'
Northern continent vs. southern. A distance impossible for an army to cross.
'And Mount Ergest itself is a natural fortress.'
A nest of monsters untouched by man.
Even I, a demon king, hesitate to interfere with some of the beasts here.
Constant blizzards tear through the mountains.
Even heroes—how many could climb this?
And this place is hidden in a basin. Even if they climb, they can't find it.
Therefore—
"I'm a demon king, and you're a princess. If you want to stay safe, don't provoke me again."
"…Understood."
Princess Ernan nodded.
"But how did you fool me? I sensed no mana at all."
"…That is…"
After hesitating, she fiddled with a ring and put it on.
Instantly, all spirits vanished. The drifting mana evaporated.
"…An artifact."
To deceive even weakened demon king eyes—
"A royal treasure passed down generations. I heard it belonged to a hero once."
"A hero's artifact…"
Even weakened, if it fooled me, it was no ordinary trinket.
Greed stirred.
At that moment—
[Lost emotion has found its target.]
[Multiple sources of hatred toward Demon King Berze Deias detected.]
They had identified me.
Real mana collection had begun.
The grand palace. The atmosphere in the great hall, filled with dozens of nobles, froze cold.
"What… in the world…"
The king swallowed his fury.
"What were the so-called royal guards doing?"
There was no shouting, but the low, subdued anger in his voice sent a chill through the hall.
"...Our deepest apologies. Her Highness shook off the knights and slipped toward the Hyacinth Palace in that brief moment—"
"So that means,"
The king slammed his fist onto the throne. Shattered fragments scattered across the floor of the great hall.
"How could the so-called royal guards fail to notice that the crown princess of this kingdom had disappeared! Explain that to me!"
"Please execute us!"
"Execute us!"
The knights prostrated themselves.
"If you truly wish to die, I can personally sever your heads."
"…"
"Your Majesty, first we must determine who abducted the princess."
"Who else would it be? Obviously a demon king."
Even if Ernan had acted impulsively, this was still the royal palace. Only demon kings possessed the ability to slip past the royal guard and the royal knights without a trace and kidnap a princess.
In kidnapping, demon kings were specialists without equal.
This was exactly why the king had spared the guards whose necks he should have snapped immediately.
"But what reason would a demon king have to violate the unspoken rule and abduct Princess Ernan…?"
"That is what I cannot understand. Unless those bastards suddenly went insane, there is no reason they would ever do such a thing."
"Not long ago, the Lust Demon King laid hands on Acan Kingdom's crown prince and had his head cut off by hundreds of heroes. After that example, would they really… ah."
The minister speaking suddenly let out a gasp. The king and nobles who had been mulling over his words came to the same realization.
"…A new one has descended."
"If an existing demon king moved, the Hero Guild would never fail to notice even the slightest sign. This must be correct."
"Parasites. They never tire of appearing, do they."
The king ground his teeth.
"I'll send a request to the Hero Guild at once."
"I don't even want to imagine how much those money-grubbing vermin will demand."
"Your Majesty, we must first rescue the princess."
"Yes. Of course."
Ernan was his hope.
Her overwhelming talent surpassed even his own, and her sovereign qualities embodied every long-held aspiration of the kingdom.
And the vessel containing that hope had been stolen. Everything within it was on the verge of spilling. She must be found—no matter the cost. And they must set an example so harsh that no one would ever dare covet her again.
"Pay whatever it takes. Track that demon's movements and find the location of his tower. Then hire the Hero Guild to take his head and bring the princess back."
"We obey!"
Messengers of the Hilderan Kingdom sprinted in all directions.
"We've discovered traces of the new demon king and the individual believed to be the princess!"
"Their route was northward! They passed through several kingdoms using teleportation circles!"
"T-Their destination is… presumed to be Mount Ergest. There have been no sightings since."
At first, both Hilderan Kingdom and the Hero Guild regarded the situation lightly.
Though the kidnapping of the crown princess ignited an unforgivable fury, once they understood the details, it all seemed absurd.
The foolishness of a newly summoned rookie demon king.
The brat had acted without even checking what Arein was like. Naturally, the kingdom assumed he would be easy to handle.
"A newly summoned demon king is pathetically weak. We'll deploy the heroes and behead him immediately."
But once they learned the destination—once they realized the demon king's tower was presumed to be somewhere on Mount Ergest—they ran into a wall.
"Why?"
"Why would a demon king that far away come all the way to Hilderan?"
"This is unlike any previous demon king."
Demon king towers were never placed right next to kingdoms, but they were also never located in extremely hazardous places.
Nor did they entangle themselves with kingdoms absurdly far away.
No one knew why—this was simply how things usually were. And the people of Arein were accustomed to that 'usual.'
Then the new demon king broke that usual.
Under normal circumstances, one could chalk it up to a demon king's whim. But both Hilderan Kingdom and the Hero Guild—having accepted the request—were obligated to rescue the princess.
"Mount Ergest?"
"They want us to enter that insane place?"
The heroes refused the request.
The Ergest mountain range was a deathtrap—constant blizzards year-round and monsters of the snow mountains that sent nine out of ten to their graves.
Even a hero empowered by the world had limits.
"I want to slay a demon king, not commit suicide!"
Naturally, the rescue of the princess was stalled.
"I will go myself. I'll lead an army and crush the snow mountains."
"Your Majesty!"
"It is impossible!"
"The surrounding nations will not stay silent!"
"Then are you telling me to abandon the princess!?"
"There is a suitable hero, Your Majesty."
"Who?"
The king's eyes lit up.
"Do you remember the heroes who participated in subjugating the Lust Demon King recently?"
"I recall that about two hundred went and less than half survived. Only three survived fighting the demon king directly."
"Among them was a remarkable hero who played a decisive role in taking the demon king's head. Someone even Your Majesty knows…"
"Hillen! Hillen Cargill, the Hero of Hilderan!"
"Yes, Your Majesty! If anyone can ascend the mountains and bring back the demon king's head, it is him!"
"But will he accept? The fact that he hasn't appeared yet suggests…"
"He is a man obsessed with fame. Send knights to publicly corner him in front of the citizens, and he will have no choice…"
"Oh?"
The king and the ministers nodded with interest.
"...Gods damn it."
[45228pt]
The converted magi skyrocketed. An incredible result—but I couldn't be happy about it.
It also meant Hilderan's anger was enormous.
And their countermeasures would be equally thorough.
The only thing I could trust was the natural fortress of Ergest.
The problem was the strong heroes for whom even that might not be enough.
"If they can climb the mountain and find the tower, my current level can't stop them."
Should I convert all the gathered magi into my own power?
'No. That's not ideal.'
Magi created from negative emotions interacted with the tower system and allowed various functions.
Reducing dimensional interference on demon kings or demons, absorbing it personally to increase combat power, summoning monsters, constructing magic circles and traps, expanding the tower's domain through demonic corruption—
But none of these were certain solutions for now.
Though my magi was climbing fast, it was nowhere near enough to confront an entire kingdom that was truly intent on killing me.
'I need another method.'
For example, blocking their path entirely…
'Yes.'
A lightning-like idea struck.
'Since I've already decided to become the mastermind behind the curtain…'
I might not be able to act myself—but what if I used others to obstruct the heroes?
'Humans put personal greed above all else. And the greatest greed of all is money.'
Humans betray their nations, organizations, siblings, and even their own parents for money.
If I could use them to mire the heroes' path in mud—
"Gordon."
"Yes, my lord."
Gordon entered from outside.
"Contact Draxon immediately."
"What shall I convey?"
"Ask him whether he's willing to buy Hilderan's magi with human money."
Though none of the demon kings actually used it, the tower system allowed demon kings to send magi to one another.