Chapter 194: From Gathering to Discussing (2/2)
“A certain circumstance, huh.”
“Yes, a certain circumstance. I don’t know what it is either.”
It was obvious that Lapis was the cause of that ‘certain circumstances’, but she calmly replied to Loren without even batting an eye. It wasn’t like Loren was not in the mood for some quips, but for now, the best thing to do was listen.
Lapis calmly continued.
The black helmet was known to be very durable and to have been infused with some kind of powerful magic, but when it came to actual use, no one had ever been able to get any effects equipping it. Thus, it had been stored away as an unidentified item.
Judie knew all this, and was about to have the helmet put in the back of the warehouse again, when something stopped her: In other Demon Kings’ warehouses, several magic-infused items similar to this helmet had been discovered. In total, the four items found were a helmet, an armor, a shield, and a longsword, all black.
The items produced no effects on their own, but they all had extremely similar auras and magic powers. They were thought to be the type of items that would only show their true power if all parts were assembled, so they were gathered in one place for research.
“But before we could do that, a bandit invaded.”
It was not clear how the bandit got into the demon territory, but he managed to sneak into a Demon King’s warehouse and steal the black armor. While running away from the pursuers, he sneaked into another Demon King’s warehouse, where he obtained the long sword before disappearing.
“The bandit was said to have called himself Magna. He’s a young man with black hair.”
It was a strange thing for a bandit to announce his own name, but the man called Magna didn’t seem to mind being chased or surrounded at all, and proudly claimed that these items belonged to him. He was still on the run now, slipping through the demons’ pursuers and the tight security.
“It’s obviously that man.”
Recalling the face of the man in black armor they had encountered in the dwarven village, Loren grumbled.
“It’s probably him. In addition to his own power, the flashes of light he called forth and the physical strength that allowed him to receive Loren’s blow may have been the result of those unidentified magical items.”
Some magical items come in sets of several pieces, and they must be equipped together in order to be truly effective. The black armor set that the Demon Kings were keeping seemed to be one of these, but it looked like just the armor and sword were enough to produce some effects.
“Our report has confirmed that, and we do not know what kind of effect it will have if the full set is assembled.”
“So before they can be assembled, let’s just destroy them. It’s a rather cowardly way of thinking for a Demon King.”
Fearing that the helmet would be stolen, and considering it had no power on its own, Judie decided to destroy it to prevent the whole set being assembled. In Loren’s opinion, it was the same as admitting to being unable to prevent a thievery. In short, the Demon King recognized that she couldn’t stop that Magna guy.
“That’s one way to see it. But the truth is, it’s just not something worth protecting. Collecting the other items in the set is also troublesome, so she wants to destroy it.”
“So, a crater. Why doesn’t she just go there herself?”
Since ordinary furnaces couldn’t destroy the helmet, it wasn’t hard to understand why Judie wanted them to dump it in a volcano crater, where the fire never stopped. But Loren believed that it would be faster and more reliable for Judie to go there herself, given that she was a Demon King.
“About that… There’s a reason why Demon Kings do not come near that place.”
“That’s strange, isn’t it? That crater is within demons’ territory, right?”
If not, it would be quite a troublesome story. Loren was worried, but Lapis gave him a nod.
“Yes, it’s in the center of the demon territory.”
“Seems quite far… So why don’t Demon Kings go there?”
Loren asked, and Lapis hesitated for a moment before giving up all intentions to lie and answered with a troubled smile.
“The truth is… There’s an Ancient Dragon living in that volcano.”
Dragons, the most powerful beasts. It was generally believed that encountering one is the greatest misfortune and the last thing ever happened in one’s life.
It was said that the longer a dragon lived, the wiser and more powerful it became. Among the dragons, there were those that had existed for a long time, since the time of the Gods. They were called Ancient Dragons, and are feared by all. Loren couldn’t find the word to describe how suicidal it would be to climb a mountain inhabited by such a being.
“If a being as powerful as a Demon King approaches the mountain, they would be warned and attacked. That’s why powerful demons can’t get close.”
In their party, Loren was a mere human, Gula could conceal her Evil God’s power, and Lapis was considerably weakened as her legs and eyes were artificial. The idea was that they could sneak up the mountain and dump the helmet into the crater before the dragon noticed them.
“This… The reward isn’t worth it, right?”
That white greatsword was certainly a very powerful weapon, but Loren thought it was too cheap for a request like stepping into the Ancient Dragon’s dwelling. It seemed that Lapis had the same opinion, so she nodded.
“I think it’s possible to get some additional compensation, though.”
“What about refusing?”
“It’s not a bad idea, but… Just use common sense. Do you think you can get out of here safely with a Demon King being displeased with you?”
Loren seriously pondered which would be less difficult: to reach the volcano crater under the watchful eye of an Ancient Dragon, or to return to the realm of humans under the watchful eye of a Demon King. It seemed that both would eventually end up being impossible, though, and Loren exhaled deeply as he dropped his gaze to the floor and thought about how troublesome this whole situation was.