Bribed by the Demon Lord Right Before the Ending

■ To the Dwarf Kingdom □

The next day.

I woke up feeling much weaker than the previous day.

“What, did you guys have all the fun yesterday without me?”

And during breakfast, Dorothea’s one-liner upon seeing my face.

Fortunately, since only we were in the dining room, her crude words didn’t reach anyone else’s ears.

“Hey, I’m a former member of the Four Heavenly Kings, so watch your mouth.”

“Did I say anything that wasn’t true? So, did you really have some fun or what?”

“It happened, alright.”

“Tsk! If you were going to do it, why didn’t you call me?”

“You went to bed early.”

If Dorothea had been there yesterday, I would likely be lying on a sickbed instead of here.

Camilla, who had absorbed essence for quite a while until recently, was truly incredible.

Even though she’s half, she lives up to being of the Succubus Queen’s lineage.

I let Dorothea’s loud complaints pass through one ear and out the other as I continued eating.

Today’s breakfast was simple: bread, oatmeal, fig jam, and goat’s milk.

Since this is our last meal at the Demon King’s Castle, it would’ve been nice to feast grandly, but I decided to eat lightly considering Gabriel’s comfort.

I had a premonition that if I ate too much, I’d end up vomiting everything out in the sky.

After finishing the meal, I stopped by the Demon King’s study to inform him of our departure before heading towards the training grounds in front of the Demon King’s Castle.

[Took you long enough.]

There, Gabriel in dragon form was waiting for us.

“Did we keep you waiting long?”

[About an hour.]

“I’m sorry.”

It turned out we kept her waiting much longer than expected.

[It’s fine since I didn’t specify when we’d come.]

Gabriel said that while lowering her body and offering her back.

There probably aren’t many others besides us who use a Demon Dragon Lord as personal transport.

Partarth, Dorothea, Camilla, and Sophia climbed onto her back one after another.

Immediately afterward, Gabriel’s massive body ascended into the air with powerful wing beats.

“So, the Demon King mentioned something about a parting gift, right?”

[I left it in my subspace. Carrying it around would’ve been cumbersome.]

With such thorough preparation, we’re ready to leave the Demon King’s Castle.

“Roughly how long will the flight take?”

[Flying leisurely, we’ll arrive in an hour.]

“Good.”

This is why people should use the skies.

If we traveled by land, it would’ve taken weeks to cover the distance we can traverse in an hour by air.

[Hold on tight then. I won’t be responsible if you bite your tongue.]

KYAOOOOOOOOO!

After saying that, Gabriel roared loudly and shot upward diagonally.

She must be planning to ascend to the stratosphere like an airplane.

Taking care of the others, I created a wind magic barrier around our bodies and began taking in the breathtaking landscape visible only from the sky.

As Gabriel had said, it took approximately an hour to arrive at Nídavellir, the Dwarf Kingdom.

Indeed, they deserve their title as Celestial Dragons; their speed matches their grand name.

Though landing directly into Nídavellir might’ve caused great confusion among the populace, the unrivaled Gabriel coolly ignored such concerns and landed directly in the courtyard of the royal castle.

“Hold it right there! Your antics end here, Gabriel!”

And we were greeted by clearly irate Dwarf Warriors.

Once we dismounted, Gabriel enveloped herself in light and instantly transformed back into human form. She twitched her eyebrows, seemingly displeased with their defiance, but refrained from acting.

Perhaps she’s holding back because someone else is responsible for this mission.

Approaching the hostile-looking dwarves, I spoke.

“Greetings, everyone. I am Partarth, a special envoy sent from the Demon King’s Castle. Is Mótsognir here?”

At the mention of my name, murmurs rippled through the dwarves.

This was likely due to my reputation spreading to Nídavellir thanks to the Gjallarhorn mercenary group that participated in last week’s war.

Subsequently, a young dwarf with a thick black beard stepped forward and spoke.

“I am Dvergar, the 8th Mótsognir. What brings the Demon King’s envoy to our distant land?”

Since it was our side that came seeking, despite his hostile demeanor, I smiled and replied.

“We’ve come to seriously discuss the alliance we proposed last time.”

In response, Dvergar scoffed and dismissed my suggestion outright.

“Hmph, I thought that matter was already settled. I have no intention of wasting the blood of our kin for your demons’ dirty ambitions.”

He spoke strongly, unwavering in his stance.

Well, this was something we already knew, so nothing surprising. I decided to gently persuade the visibly irritated Dvergar.

“Don’t dismiss it yet, hear us out. Who knows, our proposal might just be enticing. As an apology for the past incident, we’ve also brought a gift.”

Saying that, I glanced at Gabriel beside me.

Reluctantly, Gabriel snapped her fingers despite looking annoyed.

A black hole appeared in midair, and something dropped out of it.

“A token of goodwill from the Demon King to Mótsognir. We hope it pleases you.”

Upon seeing the object, the dwarves, known for loving treasures as much as dragons, gulped audibly.

However, Dvergar, who seemed calm despite the situation, signaled a nearby soldier with a glance.

“Go check it.”

“Yes, sir!”

The soldier, with strict discipline evident on his face, approached the treasure chest stacked by Gabriel.

Click!

When the soldier opened the chest, dazzling gold and jewels sparkled inside.

Judging by its value, it could probably buy several mansions with large yards.

But Dvergar’s reaction after confirming the contents was unimpressed.

Rather, he sneered.

I asked cautiously, “Is it insufficient?”

Dvergar glared at me with fiery eyes and retorted.

“Insufficient? You’re stating the obvious. Do you know how many gems this dragon has taken from me over the years? Unless you bring at least ten times this amount, there’s no reconsidering the alliance.”

Looking into his venomous eyes, I realized he wasn’t lying.

Seriously, Gabriel, don’t overdo it. How much have you extorted?

“Then, shall I take your refusal of our alliance proposal as final?”

“Hmph. Consider yourself lucky I’m not embarrassing you further here. Honestly, I’d rather kick you out right now.”

At this point, I started wondering what gave this dwarf the confidence to act so boldly.

Frankly speaking, at this stage, the alliance seems unlikely, which means I’ll have to deal with Gabriel’s wrath standing beside me.

And as expected, Gabriel approached, cracking her knuckles.

“Look at you, growing up so fast. I’ve known you since you were a snot-nosed kid, and yet here you are still defying me.”

“Hah! When did we ever plan to be servants to your kind forever? We’re freeing ourselves from your oppression!”

“Ho ho! With a mouth like yours, there’s nothing you won’t say!”

Gabriel reverted from polymorph with an enraged expression.

Her body swelled dramatically along with a burst of light.

Right at that moment,

“Now! Fire!”

Following Dvergar’s command, something flew from atop the castle wall.

KABOOM!!!

An enormous explosion.

The surprise projectile, a giant iron stake, possessed enough destructive power to send Gabriel’s massive body reeling backward upon impact.

“Gabriel!”

I was shocked.

I knew the dwarves had impressive technical skills, but I never imagined they’d create something akin to a colossal bunker buster missile.

[Dare you!]

Gabriel, whose proud blue scales were now scarred, rose angrily.

But the bunker busters prepared on the walls weren’t just one.

“Keep firing!”

BOOM!! BOOM!! BOOM!!

With each sound of explosives, massive projectiles sharply aimed for Gabriel.

She hastily dodged, but the iron stakes, magically enhanced, chased her like guided missiles.

Seeing her inevitably getting injured, I quickly intervened.

“Gabriel! Shrink back to human size!”

Despite her frantic evasions, she somehow heard me, and her body rapidly shrank.

I figured reducing her target area might make it harder for even the guided stakes to hit accurately.

But mocking my thoughts, the giant stakes continued chasing her rear end relentlessly, prompting my next order.

“Gabriel! Fly towards me!”

Obediently, Gabriel changed direction.

Naturally, the iron stake followed closely behind her.

Through vision breathing, I awakened the long-dormant magic circuits within me.

“Swwooosh-”

Surrounding mana surged into my body, transforming into wind mana.

Just as Gabriel zipped past me, I extended lightning-charged hands forward.

“Thunderclap (靑天霹靂)”

KABOOOOOOOM!!!