The Demon King Overrun by Heroes Novel - Chapter 138

Chapter 138
## Chapter 138: The Foundation of Hope

“Did I hear that correctly?”

If his hearing hadn’t failed him, the word was “limbs.”

“Legs. Legs are useful things.”

They were excellent structures for spanning gorges and accelerating travel across the land. However, the specific appendages the Demon King had in mind were nothing like standard engineering.

“You want to fix legs to the spire?”

And then actually relocate the fortress using them?

What kind of ridiculous concept was this?

The citadel was gargantuan. It was ponderous. Furthermore, this spire, birthed from the very essence of the abyss, went beyond simple dimensions and mass—every aspect of its existence was an enigma.

To force such a thing to walk?

That was—that was—

“That is a completely delusional, impossible notion!”

Roger bellowed.

Regardless of his natural brilliance and his mastery over the forge, the idea of grafting legs onto the Demon King’s tower to make it mobile was outside the realm of sanity.

“It is only impossible because you have decided it is.”

“I have decided it is because it is physically incapable of being achieved.”

“Roger.”

Berge’s gaze turned freezing. Roger winced as a low vibration entered the king’s voice.

“M-my apologies…”

“Tell me, are you a mere human or a dwarf?”

“I am a dwarf, through and through.”

“And dwarves are artisans whose talents far exceed those of men, correct?”

Unsure where Berge was leading, Roger replied with absolute conviction.

“No human—nor any other soul on this planet—can equal the craftsmanship of a dwarf.”

“Then what about you specifically, Roger?”

“What are you implying?”

“Dwarves possess the finest skills. But among your kin, where do you stand? Are you a master or a novice?”

Where did he rank among his people?

“I am the premier dwarf—the finest smith on the entire continent! No one has ever surpassed my work, and no one ever shall!”

“In that case, shouldn’t the world’s greatest artisan be the one to create something that no one else has even dared to imagine?”

“Of course! I can produce wonders that those incompetent fools couldn’t even fathom in their sleep!”

“Then you are surely capable of building legs for the tower.”

“…Click.”

Snapping out of his passionate outburst, Roger finally realized the trap he had stepped into.

“…Th-that is a separate matter entirely, though.”

“You just claimed you could do it. You aren’t some dishonest ‘halfling’ instead of a legendary ‘dwarven smith,’ are you?”

“N-no, I am certainly a legendary ‘dwarven smith.'”

He couldn’t bring himself to deny it. It wasn’t just the terror of the Demon King; it was his own ego. Even though he knew he was walking into an obvious snare.

“Then build them.”

“But…”

“You will be responsible for a historic achievement that no one has ever managed—that no one has even had the courage to try.”

“…A historic achievement.”

“Every builder in existence will envy you. They will gaze in awe and worship your creation. They might even raise a statue of solid gold in your likeness in the center of the world.”

Gulp—

Roger didn’t care much for public fame or political glory. But like any true dwarf, he had a burning desire to forge the first and greatest of things—even if he remained anonymous. He didn’t need the fame of a hero, but he desperately wanted to be the one who crafted the hero’s blade.

“I’ll do it!”

“That’s the spirit! That is my loyal subject!”

“Naturally! With the world’s most gifted craftsman at your side, you can achieve whatever you desire!”

Kuhahaha, the Demon King and the craftsman looked at each other and roared with laughter.

“First, finish relocating the equipment on the base level. We will deal with the Hildean invasion force as we discussed. After that, we will draft the blueprints. Report to my chambers once you are finished.”

“Understood, sir!”

The Demon King gave a casual gesture and disappeared.

‘…I am in deep trouble.’

It didn’t take long for the dwarf’s professional excitement to be crushed by the weight of reality.

—

As he finished moving the last of the mana cannons, Roger sank into thought.

Was it even feasible?

No.

‘I would love to attempt a project like that…’

Granting movement to the Demon King’s spire—it was an exhilarating technical challenge. But the reality was brutal. Dwarven technology was the pinnacle of the continent. Yet even their greatest achievement, golem construction, hit a limit at 7 meters. Those were far better than human versions, but they were still small.

They were nothing compared to a spire reaching dozens of meters into the sky. This wasn’t like crafting mana cannons in a series. This was a different category of existence.

‘It’s impossible. I can’t pull it off.’

However, having boasted of his ability under the Demon King’s manipulation, he couldn’t just retreat. So he decided on a different strategy.

‘I will demonstrate why it cannot be done and force him to abandon the idea himself.’

He had plenty of justifications. It would be easy. Standing before the Demon King and his advisor, Roger presented three primary hurdles.

“Relocating the spire presents three major complications.”

“Explain them.”

“First, a structure of this height will be incredibly massive. The legs would have to be equally gargantuan, which requires an astronomical amount of resources.”

“We will acquire them through the merchant guild somehow.”

“But it isn’t just a few items. Even if they could collect that much, it would expose the very guild you’ve worked so hard to build…”

“Is that a concern?”

Berge turned to Gordon.

“We could dismantle the materials and hide them in your pocket dimension to transport them to the peaks without leaving a trail, but if that much wealth just disappears from the market, it might look suspicious.”

“Can we procure what is required?”

“Once I have the technical specs, I can be sure. But we have been consistently buying mana cannon parts, so our supply lines for metals and stone are robust. The latest intelligence from the Black Knight should be reliable.”

“Excellent. The guild exists to be utilized. If I fall and the tower is lost, it serves no purpose. What are the other two issues?”

Roger’s first excuse was dismantled by their readiness.

“The second issue is the power source. This is the critical one—a mobile tower is essentially a colossus. And such a machine needs a core to provide mana for movement. Without a sufficient supply, even perfect legs won’t take a single step.”

“Do not worry about that. Have you forgotten the Mana Ghost?”

“Ah…!”

Roger remembered that event vividly. The Mana Ghost had completely integrated with the fortress, fueled by demonic energy.

“Link the legs in the same manner, and the connection will be established automatically!”

“Precisely.”

the consumption of demonic energy would be staggering, but it was a price worth paying to evade the imperial champions.

“Then… it might actually be doable…?”

With the hardest problem solved so easily, Roger’s genuine thoughts slipped out.

“Obviously. You weren’t still doubting it, were you?”

“N-no, certainly not!”

“What is the third problem?”

“The labor force.”

“The labor?”

“Mana cannons are small enough for me to handle alone. But legs? They would be scaled to the tower—meters wide, perhaps dozens of meters long. Magical engineering on that scale? I cannot do it by myself.”

“What if we use the elves?”

“They could provide support, but…”

“You require master artisans?”

“Yes. This is experimental magical engineering—no amateur can touch the work.”

“What about the golem masters, Ravina, and the servant beasts?”

“The golem masters and Princess Ravina would be useful. But the beasts? Absolutely not—never!”

“Understood. We will gather craftsmen by any means necessary. The more, the better? I assume you prefer dwarves?”

“Yes, that goes without saying…”

“So if we provide the workers, you can succeed?”

“…Uh.”

The momentum of the conversation was too fast, and Roger found himself nodding instinctively.

“…There might be some minor setbacks, but yes, it should function.”

The heart of a golem was always the mana core, but since the spire’s demonic energy could fill that role…

‘I might actually build this and be remembered forever?’

Lost in his craftsman’s obsession with the act of creation, Roger failed to see the bigger picture. History would record him not as a legendary artisan, but as the primary architect for the Demon King.

—

Roger exited the room.

“Moving the entire spire so suddenly? That is quite a shock.”

“I expected you to call it madness and protest.”

“We have the precedent of the Mana Ghost. Even I do not grasp the full scale of what this tower can do.”

Gordon offered a thin smile. Despite being a top scholar of the Demon Aide Academy, the spire remained an enigma to him.

‘They never mentioned that we could merge magical technology with the fortress itself.’

It wasn’t that they “never taught” it; it was that they didn’t know it was possible. The First Demon Emperor who created it was long gone. Current demons simply utilized the inheritance as they found it. Many secrets remained buried.

‘Only fifty such towers exist in the world.’

Across ten dimensions, there were only fifty Demon Kings in total. Even though more students finished the Academy or took over dimensions safely, the demonic realm never had more than ten active kings at a time. The reason was simple.

There were no more towers.

When a Demon King dies, the tower vanishes—recalled back to the demonic realm. These spires were irreplaceable relics that the current era could not replicate.

“Even if Roger is successful, moving the spire will consume a massive amount of demonic energy points.”

Triggering the ancient powers of the demonic realm would be expensive.

⚔ STATUS ⚔
💫 Demon Energy Points: [5154232pt]

Berge looked over his current totals. Even after spending a fortune on interference lift, he had rebuilt his wealth in a very short time.

‘Remarkable.’

The massive influx had started recently—specifically when the spire’s coordinates were revealed to the world. He had wiped out the scouts entering his lands. He had ended the life of the Star Hero, Daphne Philian.

Star Heroes were symbols of hope for the human race. Killing one should have caused total despair, but humans had a way of rationalizing things.

‘They covered up Daphne’s passing.’

Not entirely. They held public ceremonies and mourned her. But they used the opportunity to inflate the image of Hillun Kagil. They declared a victory—claiming that humanity and the empire had finally located the tower.

Daphne’s death was minimized in the press. But the public’s anger grew in direct opposition. They were furious and wanted to avenge the hero who died revealing the tower’s location; they wanted to kill the Demon King.

Daphne became a martyr; Berge became the ultimate villain of history. The propaganda from the empire and the Hero Guild turned the grief of losing a star into raw hatred. That hatred was fueling Berge’s power.

Ten million points? The rate of growth made it seem possible. It wasn’t the perfect situation, but…

“This will be enough.”

Connect the legs Roger builds to the spire, move it just once—that would be enough to survive.

“Even so,” Gordon spoke up, sounding worried.

“What is it?”

“Can he truly construct those legs?”

“……”

“The Mana Ghost worked, so the theory holds, but if he fails…”

“Then we are finished. But he won’t fail.”

“Are you that certain?”

“No one expected the Mana Ghost to bond with the spire, or for the spire to cloak itself.”

“Hiding for a moment is very different from walking.”

“There is no difference.”

Berge was sure. The limits of this cursed tower were still a mystery. And if the legs didn’t connect properly?

“We just won’t have enough demonic energy points. We will simply have to pour more in.”

“……”