Realist Demon King – 32
Where the Firedragon’s Tail has Gone
Toshizou Hijikata welcomed us as we returned to our base of Ashtaroth Castle.
He looked at me glumly and said,
“So this time you have seduced dwarves instead of women.”
But it was in jest.
He was referring to the long trail of dwarves behind me.
“I see that you are popular with both men and women.”
Toshizou continued.
“Well, that better not include yourself, Toshizou.”
I replied jokingly. Then I led the dwarves to the camp.
Here were the former residents of Sabnac’s castle.
The camp was thankfully large enough to accommodate the dwarves without problem.
Still, we would have to be very careful in order to avoid trouble with the first residents.
I didn’t believe that Toshizou or Jeanne were up to this task, and so I left matters to Eve.
Eve bowed respectfully and said,
“Please leave it to me, Master.”
And like that, the dwarf people were safely brought to my castle. Now, I wanted to gather their architects and start work on the town.
I told this to the dwarven representatives.
But they looked at me with troubled expressions.
“What? Are you not architects?”
“We are indeed architects. We can design buildings very well, however, planning an entire town is a different matter.”
They did not seem too confident.
“That’s unfortunate. But how did you go about building your towns up until now?”
“Our previous chief gave the orders. He was not only a gifted engineer, but also a genius architect. We relied on him for everything.”
“I see…”
It was quite common, actually. When rulers were too brilliant, their subordinates relied on them so much that they themselves failed to grow.
In a way, my own Ashtaroth army was quite similar. Eve often said that it would crumble immediately if I disappeared.
“I see that you are troubled. But that will not do. Something must be done.”
As I wondered what to do, Eve made a suggestion.
“Master. I hope that I am not being too forward. But why don’t you use Spirit Summoning?”
“Spirit Summoning? Without a drifted relic?”
“But you do have one. The thing inside of your pocket can be used for the same purpose as a drifted relic.”
“This?”
I put my hand over my pocket.
“This beard?”
“Yes. It is the beard of a Hero. A part of the body of one who gave his life to save his people.”
“So I can resurrect him if I use this beard?”
“There is an even chance, yes. But if you use it as an ingredient, I believe you will be able to summon someone that is very great.”
“…Very well. There is no point in keeping this anyway. If there is even a small chance of bringing him back, then I am willing to make the wager.”
“Very good, Master. A quick, yet wise decision.”
“So, I suppose I should just put this into the klein bottle?”
“Yes. However, it may not be enough by itself. I would advise that you add a powerful ingredient.”
“Hmm.”
I scratched my chin and thought.
“The person that I want to summon is Gottlieb, the late chief of the dwarves. So it should be something related to him. That should increase the chance of him being summoned.”
“Exactly.”
Hearing this, one of the dwarf youths approached me.
“Demon King. Perhaps you could use one of the weapons that our late chief crafted?”
“What? Gottlieb was also a blacksmith then?”
“He was a man of many talents, our chief.”
“Then it is decided. So, where are these weapons?”
“Our chief had not made weapons in a very long time. So we have none with us. However, if you intend on using them for materials, would it not be best to use his greatest work?”
“That is true. I will have people search for it then. Do you know the name and current owner of this weapon?”
“The weapon is called the Fire Dragon’s Tail or the Fire Dragon Axe. I believe that it is currently at a weapon store in the castle town of the Demon King Azazel.
“Azazel? I have never heard of him before.”
The name had not been on the map of our neighboring territories that Eve had shown me.
This Demon King must live very far away.
I ground my teeth, thinking about how much time this would take. But Eve explained it to me.
“That Demon King died before you were born into this world, Master. With his death, came the birth of a rare and powerful Demon King.”
“Hm…? What do you mean?”
“You are his successor, Master. In other words, this weapon store is in your castle town.”
“I see.”
How conveniiiient!