A Broken Resolve
"Absolutely not! Absolutely not! I can't do it!"
The dwarf bursts into tears.
"You can't do this to me!"
Whatever grievance he has, he wails and sobs uncontrollably.
But a stubby little dwarf bawling his eyes out is by no means a pleasant sight.
"Shut up before I rip your tongue out."
"...Y-Yes, hhic. B-But—"
"But?"
"If they find out where I am, Princess Louise will tear me in half! Are you saying it's fine if someone as loyal and devoted to the Demon King as me just disappears?!"
"If you spout nonsense one more time, I'll personally pry open your clogged ears."
"...But if she finds my equipment, she'll light her eyes on fire searching for me."
"Probably. I forgot to tell you—there's already a bounty on your head."
"Hiiik…! Then I definitely can't do this!"
"Fine. Then I suppose I have to go kidnap the princess."
"...P-Pardon?"
The hands pulling at his hair stop dead.
"Which princess do you think I mean?"
"Who other than Louise Verft?"
"T-That's just killing me for real!"
"If you hate it that much, then hand over the equipment."
"..."
"This is the Demon King's Tower. My territory. Unless I bring someone in myself, who would dare enter and kill you?"
"..."
Logar swallows dryly.
It was a threat. If he didn't obey, he'd drag her here—and kill her.
"...If I really hand over the equipment, you truly won't kidnap Princess Louise?"
"It needs your mark on it."
"Of course."
"Do not doubt the Demon King's word."
"Yes, understood."
There was no choice. Logar lowered his head and went into the workshop. When he returned, he held two swords and a shield.
"When did you make these?"
"I got bored making only mana cannons, so I tried crafting a few other things."
"And the golem?"
"I'm still researching. I must use a corrupted mana stone instead of a standard one, so it will take time."
The Tower converts mana into demonic energy. A golem made with a normal mana stone core would eventually become useless.
"Work hard."
"Yes—please, please keep your promise. I beg you."
"Don't worry. You're still useful."
"Yes! I'm very useful! I'll always be useful! You must never cut open the goose that lays the golden eggs! That would be truly foolish!"
"I won't cut open the goose, but I can snap the neck of an uppity dwarf."
"I—I'm sorry!"
Leaving the pale-faced Logar shouting behind him, Berze climbed the stairs.
***
"...You're seriously telling me that now?"
Hillen Cargill let out a sigh.
"I am an Argane. Perhaps you don't understand, but an Argane cannot simply move on a whim."
Because symbolism and responsibility follow that title.
『It is the Demon King's order.』
"The guild headquarters ordering me to become an executive was also the Demon King's doing."
『Between the previous order and this one, you know which takes priority.』
"What is the reason? Why must I go to the Verft Kingdom?"
『It's not even bad for you. The Demon King of Lust, the Demon King of Frostbite, and the Diamond Demon King—one of these three will kidnap Louise Verft.』
".....!"
『The Demon King does not want that. He wants you to stop the other demon kings and protect the princess—so you become a hero.』
Why do royals get kidnapped so easily by demon kings?
The demon kings' concealment abilities are a major reason, but no royal can be constantly guarded by top-tier escorts.
A hero capable of detecting a demon king's concealment must be at least star-class. Such heroes are rare.
Assigning such a hero as permanent guard for a royal based only on the vague threat of "possible kidnapping" would be absurd.
But what if the when and where are already known?
"…The hero who prevents the princess's kidnapping."
Now that was valuable.
Hillen Cargill noticed the symbolic weight of such a role.
『Now it's starting to appeal to you, isn't it?』
"So what's the way for me to naturally get close to Princess Louise?"
The demon king wouldn't just tell him to attach himself for no reason.
『Logar is a criminal wanted by the Verft Kingdom, and Louise Verft wants to find him more than anyone.』
『The Demon King will give you Logar's equipment marked with his signature.』
"With that, even as an Argane, I could officially be invited by the kingdom."
And not just that—if he uses this chance to tie connections with Verft, his position in the guild would rise.
"But it's not enough justification to become her escort."
『Then blackmail her.』
"...What?"
『It was Louise Verft who killed the Second Prince of Ormus. You claim you heard it directly from a demon who witnessed it in the Tower of Beasts…』
"Are you saying Louise Verft killed Max Ormus?"
『You didn't know?』
"I had no idea!"
『Thought the Demon King already told you.』
Apparently not.
The dark elf shrugged.
『Knowing now is good enough.』
"Is that something you say now?"
『Anyway, use that as leverage—blackmail her, persuade her, whatever you want. That is the Demon King's command.』
『Stick to her somehow and prevent the kidnapping.』
"..."
The transmission cut off unilaterally. Hillen Cargill let out a hollow laugh.
"These insane demon bastards…"
The mask called "etiquette" cracked slightly.
But he soon repaired it.
"It's not all bad…"
But it wasn't all good either.
Especially the part where there was a 99% chance his relationship with Princess Louise Verft—the cherished jewel of Verft—would turn into absolute worst-case hostility.
'No, it doesn't have to go that far.'
He had to obey the Demon King, but he had no intention of risking his life.
'Nothing is more precious than my life and honor.'
Why had he embedded that foreign object into his head? For life. For honor.
Blackmailing a princess of Verft inside her own kingdom was no different from suicide.
'If it gets dangerous, I'll just throw her Logar's trace and get out. The best outcome is forming a good connection.'
If he could claim he tried his best but had no choice—what would the Demon King do?
He'd probably lose it. He'd torture him using the implanted device.
'But that's all.'
Without another "star" or "Argane" to replace him…
'Take what I can. Abandon what I must. Even if my life is pledged to the Demon King, I can't let myself be dragged entirely.'
Hillen Cargill nodded to himself.
***
There are countless mountains and mountain ranges across the continent.
And if one had to name the harshest, largest range, nine out of ten would pick the Verft Mountains; the last would say Ergest.
The Verft Mountain Range.
In this brutal terrain, the dwarves built their nest.
Digging through barren, unyielding bedrock, they carved out cities underground. Thus was born the dwarven kingdom—Verft.
Fwoooom—
In the greatest underground city, the royal capital Bertian—
Within the garden of the palace's detached wing—
Princess Louise Verft swung a massive battle-axe.
Her fierce aura ripped through the air and split the oncoming sword in two.
"Kuh-heuk!"
A dwarf knight vomited blood and was hurled backward.
"Just when it was starting to get interesting…"
Louise frowned.
"Next!"
The waiting knights helped the injured one and carried him to the infirmary. Another knight stepped forward, stiff-faced, lifting his shield and sword.
"Oh, come on. What did I do that's making you tremble? Is the knight order that short on talent?"
"There is plenty of talent, Princess. It's simply that Your Highness is far too exceptional."
Volvov, watching the sparring, sighed.
Since the incident in the Beast's Domain, the princess had ruminated endlessly over what Max had done to her.
'Because I was weak, the soldiers died. Yes… that's what it was. If I'd been stronger, I could've wiped them all out myself.'
It was, in her own way, how she dealt with her guilt.
Her mourning for the knights and soldiers who died because of her own recklessness—Louise burned her body and spirit to sublimate it into raw discipline.
She pushed herself ever more mercilessly.
Perhaps that was why—having watched her from the side—Volvov was certain of it: the Louise from before her seclusion and the Louise now were two entirely different dwarves.
Louise crooked a finger.
"You. You're coming out."
"I am Your Highness's escort knight. My blade will never point toward you."
"It's only light sparring."
"Your Highness's sparring is never light. That is the problem."
"If it isn't fought like real combat, what's the point?"
"I agree with some of that, but at that point it's no longer sparring."
Just then, a knight rushed in and whispered urgently. Before Louise could reply, a dwarf stepped into the garden of the detached palace.
The knights bowed in unison.
"We greet the First Prince!"
"Raise your heads."
"Brother."
Louise welcomed him.
"You're working hard as always."
"It's merely a bit of light morning exercise."
"May I speak with you for a moment?"
"Yes."
At Louise's glance, the knights withdrew. A table and chairs were set in the garden, and refreshments were served.
"I bring good news."
The prince downed a cup of hot tea in one breath.
"What is it?"
"Logar Friedri. You know that His Majesty and I issued a bounty on him, yes?"
"Yes. Don't tell me…"
"We still haven't found him."
Louise's face darkened in disappointment.
"But someone has found a clue."
"Who? No—what clue?"
Tak—
The prince set a sword on the table. Louise examined it.
Srrring—
Drawn from its sheath, the blade was impossibly smooth. Killing intent and mana swirled within it, fused into something incredibly solid. And entwined with them—another force.
"Dimensional interference…"
A power only heroes could wield—exclusively theirs.
Equipment crafted by hero-artisans like Logar Friedri always carried that force. Mixed with mana, even faintly, it birthed a far stronger power.
"Look at the hilt."
On the ornate hilt was an all too familiar cloud-shaped engraving.
"It's definitely Logar's. Where did you get this?"
"It's not something from the royal storeroom, nor from any buyer before his disappearance."
Though Logar belonged to the artisan guild rather than the kingdom directly, the kingdom managed him meticulously.
They catalogued everything he ever created—but not this sword.
There was only one answer.
"He must be hiding somewhere and making new items?"
"They say a dog can't change its habits."
The prince grinned.
"Where is he?"
"Don't be hasty."
"We must catch him. We must capture him immediately and—!"
Louise growled. The prince patted her head to suppress her rampaging anger.
"Calm down."
"...But…"
"Catching Logar shouldn't be difficult."
"The signature. With his mark left behind, it'll be easy to trace him, right?"
"Yes. Ever since he was young, all he did was hole up in his workshop—so that's his weakness. Even if he had erased the mark, it wouldn't matter. Interest in artisan-heroes who don't use marks is always excessive."
In the end, it was only a matter of time.
"So where is he?"
"He didn't tell me that."
"What? How insolent—"
Louise scowled.
"He set a condition. He wants to meet you in person."
"Me?"
Now that the story reached this point, Louise began to understand.
"Someone even you can't lightly dismiss, Brother?"
"It's Hillen Cargill."
"...Hillen Cargill."
Though she had secluded herself, it didn't mean she severed all outside information. Louise knew exactly how much Hillen Cargill's status had risen.
"He's the hero who slew the Beast Demon King."
"You could say he also cleaned up after you."
"That is going too far."
"...When you were young, you used to blush and call me 'Brother' so adorably. Of course, you're still cute and lovely now."
"...Please stop."
"Will you meet him?"
"I will. Whatever he wants, now that he's come this far, I'll capture Logar no matter what. I can't afford to miss even the smallest clue."
"He requested a private meeting, but if you wish, I can accompany you."
"I can handle him alone."
"He's no longer just an ordinary hero—he's also an Argane of the Hero Guild."
"I'll be careful."
"Very well. Wait here. He'll come."
"Yes. Thank you, Brother."
The prince, waving goodbye, suddenly paused.
"...If, by any chance, he falls for your cuteness and tries anything inappropriate…"
"BROTHER!"
"Ahem… I'll take my leave."
The prince disappeared. And after about ten minutes—
The hottest name on the continent appeared before her.
"I heard you wished to see me."
Louise maintained as much courtesy as she could manage.
He was the one who had brought a clue about Logar, and as her brother said, he held the title of an Argane of the Hero Guild.
Even without that, being one of the Ten Stars meant he wasn't someone she could treat lightly.
However—
Her resolve—
"Princess Louise. I heard you killed Max Ormus."
—was shattered mercilessly by Hillen Cargill's very first words.
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