The Demon King Overrun by Heroes Novel - Chapter 81

Chapter 81
## Chapter 81: If You Want to See Me Once

The blizzard descended in heavy, suffocating curtains.

Each stride through the rising drifts was a battle of will. The gale screamed across the heights, a frozen edge that bit deep into anything exposed to the elements.

Across this desolate, white expanse, Gillian Aint labored forward, his path marked by a trail of deepening ruts.

Huuu—

His breath escaped in thick, pale plumes.

Woof! Woof! Woof!

The lead dogs dug their paws in and snarled. Their frantic warnings were soon answered by a cluster of Ice Trolls emerging from the gloom, their eyes shimmering with the glint of predators on the scent.

Gillian unslung his heavy axe. A predatory smirk touched his mouth, and his eyes burned with a mercenary’s avarice.

“There goes our paycheck! Watch the blades—don’t ruin the pelts!”

“Understood, Captain!”

The warriors of the White Eagle Raiders let out a collective roar and lunged forward, steel flashing against the white backdrop.

Boom!

The two forces slammed together. In a display of sheer martial dominance, it was the mortal men who dictated the rhythm of the slaughter.

High-pitched shrieks erupted from the trolls as they were torn asunder. Splatters of dark ichor and shredded remains painted the frozen ground.

“Kuhahaha!”

Gillian led the carnage. He pivoted like a whirlwind, his massive blade cleaving through the air and severing heads in a spray of scarlet that ruined the purity of the snow.

His violent, crimson aura flared, blending indistinguishably with the rising gore of the battlefield.

Snap—

In a heartbeat, fifteen Ice Trolls were reduced to mere commodities. Gillian cleaned his weapon and rested it against his shoulder.

“Get every carcass onto the transport sleds. I want them intact! If you botch the butchering, I’ll take the difference out of your hides!”

“Boss, our blood isn’t worth a copper!”

“Maybe not, but watching it spill would put a smile on my face.”

“Kuhahaha!”

The sleds groaned under the weight of the kills. The raiders were forced to abandon their seats and march, yet the prospect of the payday kept any complaints at bay.

They pressed deeper into the tundra. Occasional stragglers from other monster packs attempted to ambush them, only to end up as additional weight on the overflowing sleds.

“I see the Blue Rock Tribe!”

“Finally!”

Gillian gave a sharp, piercing whistle. As the caravan approached the settlement, the locals moved out from their dwellings to meet the newcomers.

“You’ve arrived.”

“I appreciate the hospitality, Chief.”

“The fires are stoked and the food is ready. Enter.”

“Don’t mind if we do.”

The village transformed into a scene of chaotic celebration. Snow sheep were slaughtered and set to roast over massive bonfires. Pails of potent sheep-milk spirits were distributed to every man in the company.

“To the unbreakable alliance between the White Eagle Raiders and the Blue Rock Tribe!”

“To the alliance!”

The festivities showed no sign of slowing as the moon climbed high. Mercenaries and barbarians caroused together in a loud, drunken harmony.

Feeling the weight of the alcohol, Gillian shoved a fresh bottle toward the tribal leader.

“Chief, let’s have a drink.”

“I accept.”

Clink—

Their vessels met with a dull ring. Gillian leaned closer, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial low.

“You made the right choice, joining us.”

“…I find myself questioning that decision constantly.”

“There’s no room for doubt. You’ve lived here long enough to know. This wasteland offers nothing but misery. The weather is a curse, the beasts are a plague, and if you try to migrate south to better soil, the dogs of the empire are waiting to cut you down.”

“That is the reality, yes…”

“We might fall in battle or succumb to the frost, but we won’t wither away from hunger. Not you, not your kin, not the children who follow.”

“Hm. There is truth in that.”

However.

The Chief’s expression remained clouded with uncertainty.

“Our adversary is a Demon King.”

“I’ve heard the legends—perhaps the first of their kind were gods of ruin. But the ones today? They aren’t invincible. Most of that reputation is built on the terror of what people don’t understand.”

“Her power is undeniable, regardless. Do you truly believe she can be managed?”

“It’s not about management. She’s going to be the architect of her own downfall.”

Gillian had spent years orchestrating this. He pridefully believed he possessed more intelligence regarding the Frost Tower and its sovereign than anyone else in existence.

“First: she is bound to that spire. She never departs.”

Aside from that one abduction of the princess, but even then, she didn’t stay to fight.

“Second: she never leaves the highest floor.”

“I am aware. But if she catches wind of your interference, will she remain idle?”

“She will. It isn’t a choice for her; it’s a fundamental tenet of her nature.”

He had spent his life warring against demons; he understood their obsessive, dogmatic patterns. Their convictions were their cages.

“Even so…”

“She’ll attempt to move other pieces. That is why your tribes are essential. You are my insurance. And you’re the guarantee that my people back home won’t go without.”

“…We have crossed the threshold. I suppose I must place my faith in you.”

“I won’t betray it. The Frost Demon King? We’re going to turn her into our private livestock.”

“Then let us drink.”

The shadows grew long as the drinking continued.

—

“So, they’re enlisting the nomadic barbarians…”

Reina Sordain had never met Gillian Aint personally, but from her vantage point at the summit, she had observed him and his White Eagle Raiders slinking through the drifts toward her domain.

He was a giant of a man, over two meters of corded muscle and possessed of a savage, bloody aura. He was the quintessential northern brute.

The fact that such a man had successfully courted the local tribes was something Reina could not simply overlook.

“My lady. Gillian Aint and his company have entered the territory of the Blue Rock Tribe.”

“They have already secured agreements with several neighboring clans.”

Nina, her adjutant, entered the chamber with a stack of intelligence briefings.

“Berge’s intuition was correct.”

Reina Sordain usually remained indifferent to the shifting borders of the continent or the squabbles of foreign kings.

However, the snowfields were hers. In this frozen realm, her word was absolute.

She had spent years domesticating the local monsters into her vassals and positioning frost demons as her wardens.

She didn’t claim every inch of the north, but nothing moved within it without her knowledge.

The movements of the White Eagles had been under her scrutiny from the start.

Who would ever suspect that the very monsters they hunted were her eyes and ears?

“Nine tribes including the Blue Rock… what is their combined strength?”

“They can field over twelve hundred seasoned combatants.”

“That is a significant number.”

The northern tribes were comprised of barbarians who were biologically superior to average humans.

They possessed immense physical strength and a natural resonance with aura. They were born for war. Such a gathering was a legitimate threat.

“The White Eagles bolstered by a barbarian horde… it could become troublesome.”

“Not enough to cause me any real concern.”

“Interestingly, he doesn’t seem focused on ascending the tower yet.”

That was the curiosity.

If they intended to assassinate her, she would have simply eradicated them.

“I am not without options.”

If they were merely gathering to test her boundaries? She would break them.

“I have been remarkably patient until now.”

Jason had advised her: avoid unnecessary friction with the human world.

She had even allowed the northern tribes to exist unmolested for that very reason. They served as a buffer for the empire, keeping the wilder beasts in check.

But if they were the ones to break the peace?

“They require a demonstration of the consequences.”

“Whom should I send?”

“…Send word to Duke Armand.”

She pointed to a specific coordinate on the map.

“The location: right here. The moment the White Eagles depart from the village.”

Reina’s finger pressed down on the Blue Rock Tribe’s location.

“Make it very clear what happens to those who spit on my leniency.”

“It shall be done.”

A faint, chilling bloodlust radiated from Reina. Nina bowed and retreated.

—

While the lower plains were preparing for a bloodbath, the atmosphere within the snow-capped peak was somewhat more relaxed.

“…When exactly do they plan on showing up?”

Berge let out a long, bored yawn as he stretched.

『…They are still in the mobilization phase.』

Granada’s report was starting to sound repetitive.

They had set up artillery for artificial avalanches. They had identified monster dens to use as traps.

Yet, fourteen days had passed without a single hostile move.

“How much longer are they going to hesitate?”

『The Demon King’s presence has made them excessively cautious.』

“Why the sudden nerves?”

To the public, Berge’s own accomplishments were shrouded in mystery.

He had defeated Hillun Kagil’s party, yes—but the official story was that they had succumbed to internal strife and the harsh conditions of the Erjest Mountains.

They had publicly confessed to never even finding the tower.

『…Well. I must apologize, but…』

Granada trailed off before admitting the truth. It appeared his own loose tongue had amplified their fears.

“I should have guessed. If you hadn’t spoken up, they would have probably suspected you instead.”

The immediate danger of discovery had passed, but it was better for Granada to be the one under the microscope.

He had shared just enough useless information to satisfy them.

The fact that they had narrowed down the tower’s location based on those scraps proved they weren’t entirely incompetent.

『I am grateful for your understanding.』

“They’ll come eventually. If they were truly that terrified, they would have abandoned the expedition entirely.”

The mountain remained quiet for now, but the workshops in Hortonwork were churning out new enchanted equipment. The number of Chimera hounds was growing. An assault was inevitable.

『Indeed it is.』

“It feels like living next to a ticking clock.”

The waiting was the worst part. Berge hated being reactive.

Granada spoke up again, his tone uncharacteristically hesitant.

『My Lord… and Demon King. May I ask something?』

“Go ahead.”

『Did you not, alongside Rozel Charnt, slay the Beast Demon King in Tarta?』

“We did.”

『With Hillun Kagil and myself present.』

『And Rozel was supported by the champions of the Akan Kingdom.』

“Get to the point.”

『They have been inquiring about you. I told them you were surviving, but… they have expressed a desire to meet.』

“Meet me?”

Had they lost their minds?

A prince and a princess wanting an audience with a Demon King?

No, that didn’t track.

“Are they looking for the Demon King, or for Pale?”

『The latter.』

“For what reason?”

『They witnessed the mana that Rozel took from you. Stories have spread through her and the Red Flame Raiders.』

“…So it’s connected back to that?”

『It has. Furthermore, Rozel has locked herself in her sanctuary. She has spent days obsessively researching your mana signature.』

“I knew she wouldn’t be able to resist.”

The fanatical look in her eyes back then had been a dead giveaway. A master mage encountering the essence of a phoenix—the urge to experiment would be overwhelming.

The question was: what would the results be?

‘If Rozel gets any stronger, she’ll be a nightmare to deal with.’

She was a survivor of the previous timeline, someone who had burned demons to ash until the very end.

‘I need to know what she’s discovering. And the Akan Kingdom…’

『Demon King?』

Granada’s voice pulled him from his thoughts.

“…What were you saying?”

『Lavinia Akan is the one showing the most interest.』

“Lavinia…”

Before the regression, she was the one who had orchestrated his first kidnapping. The memory of her chambers was burned into his mind.

‘Getting involved with her? That’s a disaster waiting to happen. I should stay away.’

That was the logical path. But Lavinia was the heart of the Akan Kingdom.

Without her, there would be no chimeras, and his life would be much simpler.

‘Were the chimeras always intended to be used against us?’

That was news to him. He had assumed it was just a hobby for a mad scientist.

‘I want nothing to do with Lavinia Akan, but…’

A Demon King sometimes has to face the things they’d rather avoid.

“Granada.”

『Yes, Demon King.』

“Tell them I’ll be there.”

『…I beg your pardon?』

“If they’re so desperate for a meeting, I’ll give it to them.”

It was time to see exactly what Lavinia Akan and her laboratory monsters were up to.