Chapter 229 - The Demon King Aboard the Sky Tower

A little earlier, on an uninhabited island in the continent’s northwest.

A colossal tower stood tall—the very tower all the heroes and humans, and one particular Demon King, had been so desperate to find.

“We’re beginning!”

At the tower’s summit, Logger gave the order, all preparations complete.

“Raise the legs!”

“Raise the legs!”

In the control room built into the upper floors, dozens of dwarves worked their keyboards in unison.

SCREEEECH

The tower slumped down. The eight spider legs supporting it slowly began to rise.

WHIIIIINE

Thousands of joints turned in coordinated motion. The connecting mechanisms installed on the tower’s outer walls smoothly received the legs.

The legs became one with the tower, as though they had always been part of it.

“Legs successfully connected!”

“Whew.”

Logger wiped away his sweat. Modifying the tower itself was uncharted territory even for the dwarves. They had never done anything like it, so every step was a first. Fortunately, everything had succeeded so far.

“Then...”

“At last...”

Logger and the dwarves swallowed nervously. The Demon Kings, princess, and elves watching from behind them were tense as well.

“My lord?”

“I’ve already given you control over enough demonic energy. Do as you see fit.”

“Yes! Activate the levitation stones!”

“Activate the levitation stones!”

An immense amount of demonic energy was sucked in at once. The tower began to tremble. Sand from the beach flew in every direction.

And then.

“...!”

Berge, reclining on his throne, stopped resting his chin on his hand.

The tower’s exterior and interior were different.

From outside, it looked ordinary, but overlapping layers of dimensional magic made the inside entirely different. Once the door closed, the interior and exterior were effectively separate worlds.

That meant nothing could be felt from inside the tower. No floating sensation. No shaking.

But they could see it.

The view outside, displayed through the tower’s power, was changing.

Their vantage point rose. The ground below came into view.

The tower was rising.

The tower was flying.

“I-it’s lifting! It’s up! It’s really lifting!”

“Wooooo!”

The tower stopped when it reached fifty meters above the ground. The dwarves let go of the controls and embraced one another.

“It’s flying! The tower’s flying!”

“I made this with my own hands! I could die without regrets...!”

“Why would you die, you fur dwarf bastard? Now that you’ve seen the sky tower rise, you have to see it in action.”

“Good heavens, we actually sent a Demon King’s tower into the sky...!”

The dwarves were not the only ones moved and astonished.

“... You truly did it.”

“Wow, the tower’s in the air! Did you see? The tower’s in the air!”

“I know, so be quiet, Vivian.”

Despite his brusque words, Berge could not hide the smile on his lips either.

“Congratulations, my lord.”

“This is incredible in a different way from being able to learn magic.”

“Wow, hurry up and fly farther. Don’t tell me this is all?”

“Of course not.”

If he had intended to stop at merely floating, he would never have pushed Logger and the dwarves so hard—or supported them so generously.

“Logger!”

“Yes.”

“Can we fly off right now?”

“Of course. In theory, we can reach five hundred kilometers per hour.”

“Five hundred?”

“Of course, demonic energy consumption increases enormously with speed, so I recommend cruising at two to three hundred. Anything beyond that is practically wasteful.”

“Three hundred, then.”

Not bad. No, he was exceedingly pleased. A sky tower traveling at an average of three hundred kilometers per hour.

“The drawback is that the faster we go, the more demonic energy we consume...”

“That doesn’t matter.”

He had already lifted all the interference. The remaining demonic energy could be paid to the Demon Realm to summon demonic creatures or demons, used to grant power to his servants, or used to strengthen himself.

But for now, fully absorbing the power of Dorche, Daniel, and the vampire Demon King Bruno was more than enough for Berge. Absorbing additional demonic energy right away would actually be a bad move.

Reina had already reached a wall, too, and needed a breakthrough rather than more demonic energy. He was giving energy to the other demons, but more was coming in than he was distributing.

That income had fallen considerably of late because Jason had monopolized everyone’s attention, but it would soon rise again, so it hardly mattered.

“Then let’s give it a try. Set off.”

“Yes! Our destination?”

“Surely that has already been decided.”

Hilderan.

“We’re going to Hilderan.”

* * *

“Load the mana cannons!”

“Load the mana cannons!”

Demonic energy points drained away in a rush. Demonic energy filled the cannons.

“Aim!”

“Aim!”

Eight hundred mana cannons lowered their angles in unison.

“My lord, give the order.”

With everything ready, Logger looked at Berge with confidence in his eyes.

Berge looked down at the half-ruined fortress and the thousands of demonic creatures surging toward it like waves.

The tower hung a hundred meters overhead, but the intense fighting had kept everyone from noticing it.

“That bastard Jason certainly amassed a lot over those centuries.”

This was only a tiny fraction. One of the cities under attack, one of the legions attacking them.

Apparently, this was happening throughout Hilderan, and they had already killed tens of thousands. He could not imagine how many more remained.

‘If I wipe all those things out...’

They would certainly be grateful.

And Jason would be furious.

“Fire.”

“Open fire!”

“Open fire!”

The dwarves worked the controls. The mana cannons angled toward the ground all spat fire at once.

Eight hundred shells split apart. In the blink of an eye, eight hundred became eight thousand and struck the ground.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOOOM!

Unlike previous ammunition, the cannon shells linked directly to the tower were masses of pure demonic energy.

Because they contained demonic energy rather than mana, they were even more savage and ferocious. More destructive, too.

The sudden bombardment from the sky left the demonic creatures utterly bewildered.

“Heh heh heh, I made this with my own hands...”

“New-model mana cannons firing from a sky tower! Good heavens...!”

“Fantastic! What a thrill!”

“Ah, it’s so beautiful.”

The dwarves were just as overwhelmed.

They would probably have continued for quite some time had new demonic creatures not appeared to attack the tower.

“Enemies ahead!”

“A flock of gargoyles is approaching! My lord, your orders!”

“Handle it yourselves.”

“Yes! Adjust cannon angles, east and west, one hundred twenty degrees!”

Some of the mana cannons aimed at the ground turned toward the approaching gargoyles.

“Cluster shells. Lightning attribute.”

Fire.

BOOM!

Balls of fire traveled in arcs. Just before colliding with the gargoyles, they split and scattered, then exploded. Black lightning spread in every direction.

More than half the gargoyles plummeted.

Enraged by the deaths of their kin, the survivors beat their wings harder. Baring teeth and claws, they drew close.

At that instant.

“Discharge.”

“Discharge!”

CRAAACK!

Whips of black lightning coiled around the entire outer wall and struck the intruders.

That was the end of it.

“Who do you think you’re attacking, you bastards!”

“This is the sky tower!”

“Dwarven technology is the best in the world!”

The tower’s mana cannons angled toward the ground again.

* * *

The soldiers cheered at the sudden bombardment.

“W-we’re saved!”

“Reinforcements! Reinforcements are here!”

WAAAAAH!

The bombardment turned into cheers, and the cheers raised morale.

The roars and explosions felt as though they would rupture their eardrums, but relief and joy at surviving came first. Their cheering, however, did not last long.

“But where are the reinforcements?”

“Huh?”

“W-what is that?”

“L-look up!”

“A-a tower?”

“There’s a tower floating in the sky!”

The enormous shadow covering the walls alerted the soldiers that something was amiss. One soldier looked up. The others followed as though entranced. Once they raised their heads, they could not bring themselves to lower them.

“Th-this is insane...”

One soldier’s muttering spoke for them all.

It was a tower.

A tower so enormous that it seemed utterly impossible for it to float in the sky.

“... What the hell is that?”

“W-why is something like that here?”

“The end of the world is here!”

“We’re all going to die!”

“S-shut up! It’s helping us for now! That means it’s on our side!”

“Could it be the dwarves?”

“R-right! It attacked the demonic creatures! It’s on our side!”

“They say the dwarves have levitation ships, don’t they? They could have levitation towers, too!”

“I... suppose...?”

The soldiers struggled to put a reassuring spin on it, but they could not hide the anxiety on their faces.

At one side of those walls, Count Pagan regained consciousness.

The tower still floating majestically overhead left him dumbfounded.

“... I’m mad. I must have gone mad. Something like that couldn’t possibly exist unless I’d lost my mind. Of course not.”

Count Pagan muttered to himself.

“We’ve all gone mad!”

“Your Excellency! Please get hold of yourself!”

“How am I supposed to? Ken! How can you say that after seeing that thing?”

He thrust out a hand toward the tower.

“Those mana cannons are firing. And that energy isn’t mana—it’s demonic energy!”

Having awakened as a hero, he could feel it clearly. The savage, ferocious energy that filled him with instinctive revulsion was unmistakably demonic energy.

“I’ve only experienced anything like this once in my life! How am I supposed to get hold of myself?”

And that was not all.

“That’s a tower! A Demon King’s tower!”

He had participated in a hero’s journey as a knight. Naturally, he had seen a Demon King’s tower as well. There was no doubt that this was one.

“Why is a Demon King’s tower flying through the sky? Why is it shelling its own demonic creatures?”

“... Perhaps.”

“Perhaps?”

“Perhaps they aren’t on the same side...”

“Even though they’re both Demon Kings?”

“There’s more than one Demon King, isn’t there?”

“I’ve never heard of those Demon Kings fighting each other in my life.”

“Neither have I.”

“Then why spout that nonsense when you know that!”

“Then couldn’t it be the dwarves?”

“The dwarves?”

“Who but dwarves could build that many mana cannons or a flying tower?”

“And the demonic energy?”

“Pardon?”

“How do you explain the demonic energy!”

Ken fell silent. Count Pagan tore at his hair.

“The Demon King of Lies must be putting on a play to mock us. Think about it. He’s called the Demon King of ‘Lies,’ isn’t he?”

“That was a name the Empire gave him...”

“No, I’m certain. Yes, that’s it. We have to retreat. Otherwise we’ll all die! At this rate, we’ll all die!”

Yes, that was it.

“Prepare to retreat immediately! While that damned tower is holding off the demonic creatures!”

“No, there’s no need for that.”

“What do you mean, no need? That tower will kill us all... Huh?”

Count Pagan had been roaring at the uninvited arrival who interrupted his orders, but his eyes widened.

Jewel-like amethyst eyes, harmoniously framed by silky platinum-blond hair. A radiant face and an air of refinement.

“... Uh, well.”

He struggled to compose his expression and think of what he should say.

“Your Highness...?”

“That’s right, Count Pagan.”

“Why are you... here?”

“I was on my way to reinforce you after clearing out the demonic creatures near Bris Castle.”

“Th-thank you.”

“Not at all. It’s only my duty as Crown Princess.”

“Yes... You are truly a model of compassionate royalty, putting noblesse oblige into practice.”

“You’re too kind.”

“Uh...”

Count Pagan closed his mouth blankly. What had he been about to say?

‘There’s a tower floating in the sky, and I felt demonic energy, so I was going to run.’

Right. The moment that tower turned its cannons toward the fortress, the fortress would be doomed.

“Your Highness! I’m grateful for your help, but it’s dangerous here!”

“Dangerous?”

“Yes! Look up there. An unidentified tower has occupied the sky! The mana cannons mounted on its exterior keep firing!”

“It’s wiping out the demonic creatures.”

“Of course it is for now, but that’s a Demon King’s tower!”

“A Demon King’s tower?”

“I’ve participated in a hero’s journey and a raiding party before. I saw a Demon King’s tower then, and it looked exactly like that!”

“Ah, I see.”

“Yes! Since it’s a Demon King’s tower, we cannot let our guard down! We don’t know when that bombardment might rain down on us, so we must flee!”

“So you’re saying it’s dangerous and we need to flee?”

“Yes! Of course!”

“But...”

“Yes!”

“Couldn’t Demon Kings fight each other because they don’t get along?”

“Yes! ... Pardon?”

“They say the enemy of your enemy is your friend, don’t they?”

“...”

Count Pagan instinctively reached for his sword. In his view, only someone as witless as Ken would say anything so absurd.

But surely the Crown Princess would never do that.

Which left two possibilities. Either she was not the Crown Princess, or all of this was a succubus’s dream illusion.

- Do not doubt her.

He would have swung his sword had a water spirit with an overwhelming presence not suddenly appeared.

- This child is unquestionably the Crown Princess you are bound to serve.

- I guarantee it in my name as Naias, spirit king.

“... Ah.”

“Were you about to attack me? You know that’s treason, don’t you?”

“N-no! Of course not!”

“Really?”

“Of course, Your Highness! How could I dare...!”

“Then I will give you an order as Crown Princess.”

“Yes!”

“There is no need to retreat. Rally your troops, and remember this sight clearly. You will have to bear witness to this historic moment before everyone. That is an order from your Crown Princess.”

Her voice faded away with the wind.

* * *

“Where are you looking in the middle of a fight, you bastard?”

A spear of fire aimed for the dark elf’s throat. Only then did he sense the killing intent, but the moment he raised his sword, an explosion swallowed him.

Ralph threw his shield. The staggering dark elf’s neck snapped. Roselle’s flames fell upon him, and his corpse turned to dust and vanished.

It was a futile death.

Had the tower’s sudden appearance not rattled him, he would never have died so easily.

Having finally disposed of all twelve dark elves, Roselle looked up at the sky.

“... They really got that thing airborne.”

When the dwarves had talked their crazy talk, she had simply assumed they were lunatics. She had never imagined they could actually build something like that.

“That’s...”

Incredible. No, even incredible was not enough to describe it.

“That’s insane! Do you see it? It’s amazing! A tower is flying through the sky!”

“... It does look impressive.”

Ralph cleared his throat.

“I want to go inside. I want to see how they built it, what other weapons it has, and how much firepower it packs.”

“Not yet. Have you forgotten what Her Highness the Crown Princess said?”

Roselle stifled a groan.

“So what did she say comes next?”

“If the tower appears, she told us to watch.”

“Watch?”

“Yes. Our lord will handle everything else.”

No sooner had Ralph finished speaking than the bombardment stopped. The tower’s door—no, its lower section—opened.

Then black spheres began to fall.

They were quite large, and there were far more than one or two.

Their curiosity lasted only a moment. As each sphere struck the earth, it absorbed the entire impact and vanished. The demonic creatures and demons waiting quietly inside emerged.

“He’s sending demonic creatures directly? Why not just finish them off with the cannons?”

“Her Highness said there is no clearer proof that a Demon King stands with humanity than demons and demonic creatures attacking other demons and demonic creatures.”

“Even so...”

CRACK

A blizzard swept in.

The heat of the bombardment vanished in an instant.

“Isn’t having her come out, too, a bit excessive? All the high-ranking demons are already dead.”

“She said it was better to make it unmistakable, didn’t she?”

The Demon King of Bitter Cold’s blue hair streamed in the wind.

Dozens of frost demons and thousands of demonic creatures followed behind her.

They descended upon Lies’ demonic creatures.

“More demonic creatures!”

“Holy shit!”

“D-do we need to stop them?”

“No, they’re going that way, not toward us!”

“Are demonic creatures... attacking other demonic creatures...?”

“Impossible.”

The murmuring atop the walls grew louder.

A short while later, the land before the fortress had turned into a field of pure white ice.

Not a single enemy monster, demonic creature, or demon survived.

With its demons aboard once more, the tower drifted serenely away.

“... What was that?”

“... Did I really see that?”

“... Demons annihilated other demons...?”

“... I think I’m losing my mind. I think I’m losing my mind.”

Leaving the panicked humans behind.