Imperial Intrigue
『You are extremely busy these days. Thanks to you, Demon King.』
"If you're going to complain, at least fix your expression."
『Ah, my apologies.』
The smile on Hillen Cargill's lips faded.
Berze snorted.
Hillen Cargill was a very simple hero.
He wanted strength, wanted power, wanted honor and fame.
He was greedy enough to ignore any means necessary to obtain them.
He acted kind because pretending to be good was beneficial.
He submitted to the demon king because obedience served him.
And among the things important to him was—connections.
Humans were social creatures. They built complex, organic networks over centuries, and within that enormous framework called society, a lone individual was extremely limited.
Thus, connections were crucial. Strong connections. Useful connections.
And Kain, the Fifth Prince of Acan, was exactly such a fortunate connection.
At the same time, even Hillen Cargill could not simply appear before him and ask to build a relationship.
But thanks to Berze, that barrier had collapsed—of course he was delighted.
"And on top of that, you've planted elves in Acan's Mage Tower. Must feel great. Remember this: they're not your subordinates. They're mine."
『Naturally. And I, too, am your servant, Demon King. Your most faithful.』
"You don't mean a word of that."
『How could you say so? From the moment you saved my life, I understood. You are truly precious to me.』
"Precious because I'm useful, you mean."
Hillen didn't deny it.
Berze didn't find it arrogant either.
It was simply the relationship between a hero destined to be called the greatest, and a demon king destined to become the greatest.
"You're returning to the guild headquarters now, I assume?"
『I expect so.』
"The most important thing is to seize control inside the guild."
『Of course.』
"When you arrive, find out who the guildmaster actually is."
『The Guildmaster of the Hero Guild has been missing for quite some time.』
『The Elder Council claims nothing is wrong, but disappearing this long means a problem definitely exists.』
"Exactly."
Berze's gaze sharpened.
"That's why you need to uncover it."
『A difficult task.』
Still—
『Even without your command, I intended to discover it.』
Hillen smiled.
『It is my goal.』
After cutting off communication with Hillen, Berze recalled his promise to Reina Sordein.
Ugar Velvek.
What had motivated his bold claim?
Berze was certain.
Jayson interfered.
Ugar was like a hedgehog—timid for his size, always raising his quills and acting cautiously.
Someone like that would never make a confident declaration without evidence, nor would he go around gathering information while curled up protecting a princess.
Thus, someone must have planted certainty inside him.
And only Jayson Corkmoon fit the role.
Thinking about it… maybe it's not that complicated.
At first it had shocked him, but in hindsight, it wasn't that impressive.
Because Jayson hadn't actually killed Draxon or invaded the territory.
Either way, Berze needed to find out.
For Reina's sake, and for his own.
Knock knock—
"Come in. Hm?"
An unexpected visitor.
"Demon King."
"What brings you here?"
It was Kaede.
"If you are not too busy… may I speak with you for a moment?"
"Sit."
She hesitated, then quietly sat down. Berze rummaged around for something to offer—tea was too much trouble—and found some candy Reina had given him, shoved in a drawer.
"Eat."
"Ah… thank you."
"What is it?"
"…I feel guilty saying this without having done anything of value, but… may I ask you a favor?"
"A favor?"
"…Please help my brother."
"…?"
What was that supposed to mean?
"You have seven brothers, if I recall."
"I mean the Empire's Third Prince—Martin Jespine."
"Explain clearly so I can understand."
"A short while ago, Lord Ernan told me something."
"Ernan?"
"Yes. News that Gustaf Jespine—the Eighth Prince—had died."
Right, he vaguely remembered that being mentioned. Probably around the time he was preparing to kidnap Elena.
He hadn't cared.
After nearly dying to the Imperial Crown Prince, he had no desire to get tangled further with the Empire.
Kidnapping Kaede Jespine had been an accident, something done without intent or plan.
And that was the full extent of what Berze considered his relationship with the Jespine Empire.
"A mid-level aura knight supposedly fell from his horse and died."
"Assassination, then."
"I also believe so."
"And the Empire believes that story?"
"If there is no proof, belief is irrelevant."
"That the current Emperor's lesson?"
"Yes."
In some ways, quite similar to demons.
Likely the work of the First Prince—the future Crown Prince.
He was famous for killing numerous competitors and blood relatives to seize his throne.
Of course, the Second Prince wasn't impossible either. He was simply overshadowed by the First.
But he, too, was a man who could become as cruel as needed to achieve his goals.
"You may not know, but the Empire is currently consumed by a succession struggle."
He knew well. This was the period when the First Prince, the Second Prince, the First Princess, and the Third Prince were all tearing each other apart.
And the one who dropped out first had been the Third Prince.
The First Empress, born of a ducal family second only to the Emperor in power—along with her First Prince and First Princess.
The Second Empress, from a marquess family that had amassed enormous wealth within the Empire—along with her Second Prince.
Compared to them, the Third Empress, mother of the Third Prince, was hopelessly outmatched.
Naturally, her son had been the first to be eliminated.
"So you want me to help the Third Prince?"
"Yes."
"Rejected."
Berze had zero desire to maintain connections with the Empire. To overturn that decision, there needed to be real benefit.
If it were the First Prince, destined to be Crown Prince, or the Second Prince, who fought him to the bitter end… that would be different.
If Berze could use Kaede as a foothold to interfere with the future and exert influence, that could be interesting.
But the Third Prince was no more than a sinking ship.
"I am a demon king. Touching the Empire's succession is absurd—and I can't do anything anyway."
In another dimension, it wouldn't have been impossible. He could have simply brainwashed a suitable imperial royal, killed the others, and made him Emperor.
But in Arein, that was impossible. Brainwashing required magi, and the Imperial Palace had heroes.
"I am not asking the Demon King to intervene personally."
"…Are you playing games with me?"
"Hillen Cargill. I heard he is the Demon King's subordinate. At first, I didn't believe it. But seeing the elves who trust and follow you… I realized it wasn't a lie."
"So you're asking me to order Hillen to support the Third Prince?"
"Yes."
How ridiculous. A "Hillen-can-solve-everything" theory.
"A hero cannot interfere in the Empire's succession."
The Empire was one of the nations most wary of the Hero Guild. They had always kept a tight leash on any influence that transcended nations.
For someone like the Guild's Argan to suddenly interfere in succession? Impossible.
And it wasn't just Hillen.
The Hero Guild maintained strict neutrality. No matter how many demon kings Hillen had killed, a tradition upheld for centuries could not be broken on a whim.
"I am not asking for my brother to become Emperor."
"Then?"
"His life. I only want my brother not to die."
"So you're talking about building connections, not support. You think Hillen's presence could create a path of escape?"
"No."
"Then?"
"But I believe it would increase his chances, even if only slightly."
"You think that's your best move?"
"…Yes."
Berze could roughly see what she was thinking.
"If I accept your request, what do you offer me?"
"I am your knight."
"For only five years."
"You were the one who set that term, Demon King."
"That was the price for your freedom. Not for a prison, but to roam the tower freely. And I even assigned Gordon to teach you swordsmanship."
"…What is it that you desire?"
"Money."
Berze held up his hand.
"I bought Hillen for 100,000 gold. Surely an Imperial Prince is worth at least that."
"…I do not have such a sum."
"Then this conversation is over."
In truth, even if she had the money, Berze still didn't want to get involved with the Empire.
"Demon King."
"First the Eighth Prince, then the nobles who followed him, and finally the Third Prince. With the knights who supported him gone, his base must be even weaker now."
"How do you know that so well…?"
"Who knows."
Because it had happened in the past.
The assassins took the Third Prince first. Only afterward did the others begin turning on each other.
He remembered Kaede Jespine dying then as well—while attempting to subjugate a demon king.
And the demon king they tried to subjugate was…
Jayson Corkmoon.
Kaede failed, the hero squad was annihilated, and though the Empire raged… that was all.
At first they shouted that they would kill Jayson, and yet nothing happened.
More accurately, the Empire took no action.
At the time, Berze hadn't thought much of it. But looking back, it was suspicious.
A princess wasn't merely kidnapped—she died—and the Empire didn't retaliate?
They didn't even pretend.
For the Empire, it was a matter of prestige.
Nothing like that could happen unless there was a hidden agreement.
Could it be that the string Jayson pulled… was the Empire itself?
The idea struck him like a bone stuck in his throat.
If Jayson had connections inside the Empire… then…
His thoughts spiraled, linking one suspicion to the next, until they finally reached one conclusion:
…did he have a hand in my death?
It might be speculation. But after remembering Vivian's case, it wasn't entirely impossible.
"No. No…"
Then Berze realized why his death had been buried so easily.
A far greater storm had swept everything away—
The death of the Second Prince of the Jespine Empire.
The Third Prince disappeared, the struggle intensified, and civil war was on the brink of breaking out.
And then the Second Prince died absurdly.
"Heart failure," if he recalled.
Likely the First Prince's doing.
Unrelated to Jayson.
But once suspicion took root, it wouldn't leave.
Even if it has no relation to me directly… the idea that Jayson has ties to the Empire isn't baseless.
Jayson certainly had connections among humans.
So perhaps…
Using the Third Prince as bait, he could dig deeper.
Was Jayson tied to the Empire? Or somewhere else?
And if Berze strengthened the Third Prince, accelerating the civil war—
The Empire could be weakened.
A dangerous idea.
One misstep, and he would be destroyed. But without taking risks, nothing could be gained.
"My mind is made up."
"…What?"
"I will grant your request."
Berze smiled coldly.
***
Vivian Blunt.
Called "Lust" by humans, she longed to escape her isolated life.
After her attempt to kidnap Luize Bervft failed, and after heroes invaded her tower, her entire domain was devastated.
Unable to undo even a single layer of dimensional interference, her tower survived not because she was strong, nor because she had hidden power.
But because of something pathetic—
mercy.
Mercy received from mere humans.
"How dare they…!"
The immediate cause had been the hero and humans who found her tower.
But if one dug deeper, it was never simply a human problem.
Jayson Corkmoon.
He had warned Vivian many times.
Stay still.
Do not cause trouble.
But Vivian had not listened, and this was the result.
Could this truly be a coincidence?
No.
There had been a hint in Jayson's words.
"He has some connection with humans."
It was obvious that it wasn't something as trivial as planting a dark mage or dark knight.
It meant he had negotiated or bargained with sane, rational humans.
Part of her wanted to scream that he had no pride as a demon king—
But…
"It makes sense. This place really is a piece of garbage."
There were over 4,000 heroes.
Any city even slightly large always had a hero or two.
She, as a demon king, could hide herself, but her subordinates were slaughtered or driven back every time she sent them out.
As a succubus, even as a demon king, she was not particularly strong compared to other demons.
It was her racial specialty to manipulate humans and sow chaos.
But that avenue had been blocked. From the very beginning.
A succubus who could not seduce humans was half a being—no, less than half, merely a husk.
"What do I do?"
She no longer cared about finding the one who killed Draxon.
Survival mattered now.
She needed to endure—somehow—and hope for a future chance.
Ironically, the answer she found came from the very person who had driven her into extremity—Jayson.
"Jayson bargained with humans."
Whatever form it took, the fact remained:
He had found a point of mutual interest.
Meaning—
"Humans of this world… might see demon kings as partners in trade?"
Had she heard something this absurd in the Demon Realm, she would have laughed in scorn.
But not now.
After a thousand years of defeating demon kings, the power dynamic in Arein had fully reversed.
"Humans… it has to be humans."
Negotiation with humans.
But how?
"How else?"
For a succubus demon king, there was ultimately only one method.
She rose from the throne.
"Heina."
"Yes, Demon King."
"I'll be leaving the tower for a while. Manage it properly."
"Are you going to kidnap royalty?"
"No. Not kidnapping."
She descended the steps. Her lieutenant, Heina, hurried to follow.
"Then what, my lady?"
"Seduction."
She had never imagined that even after becoming a demon king, she would have to seduce mere humans.
"I will make the power holders of this land fall into my hands."
If ordinary succubi could not accomplish it, then she would simply do it herself.
The demon king—retired from active conquest—unfurled her wings of temptation once more.
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