The Shadow of the Brand
"W-Wahhh...!"
"Huh...? Elisio, are you okay?"
Elisio Gremlina, her eyes brimming with tears, threw herself into Rofel's arms.
This was the first time she had ever experienced a terror so profound she feared for her life.
Though they were still far from safe, she held her breath and let her tears flow freely against his chest.
Only after she had cried enough to soak Rofel's shirt, leaving it translucent against his chest, did she finally begin to calm down.
"B-But... how... how did you find me...?"
"Huh? Me?"
"Y-Yes... I mean, they found me in the end... but I thought I was hidden pretty well..."
"Ah, about that... Honestly, I don't really know how to explain it either. I just had this strange feeling that someone would be hiding in a corner like this."
Rofel tilted his head, seemingly realizing how absurd his own explanation sounded even as he spoke.
But looking at him, Elisio could tell he wasn't lying.
It was hard to believe, but given the gravity of their situation, she decided to let the minor detail slide.
"I-I see... Then, more importantly... w-what's happening outside right now...?"
"Well... from what I saw while escaping, the dark mages are holding the other students and staff hostage in the Great Hall. Because of that, the suppression forces outside can't easily breach the building."
Although the academy had been caught off guard by the sudden terrorist attack, it was still a state-sponsored institution.
They had immediately requested reinforcements from the knights and the Magic Tower, while the stationed security personnel worked to suppress the dark mages.
Furthermore, several exceptionally talented academy students had taken matters into their own hands, fighting back against the dark mages despite their student status.
While they had cleared the dark mages surrounding the exterior, the enemies inside still held hostages, resulting in a tense standoff centered entirely on the Great Hall.
"T-Then... should we keep hiding? Until... until everything is resolved...?"
"Maybe, but..."
*Rumble!*
A deafening roar echoed as the building shuddered violently.
"...I'm worried this building won't hold out until then."
Weakened by the initial explosion of the magic circles drawn by the dark mages and the subsequent fighting, the Great Hall looked ready to collapse at any moment.
"T-Then what do we do...? Is there... is there any way to sneak out...?"
"I think that's our best bet. It shouldn't be too difficult right now. From what I saw, most of the dark mages are gathered in the center of the Great Hall with the hostages. If we can just avoid the few guards patrolling the halls, escaping should be relatively simple..."
"B-But... what if... what if we get caught by those guards...?"
"Uh, well..."
"E-Either way is dangerous...! I-It might be safer to just stay hidden in one place and wait for rescue—"
*Crash!*
A massive piece of debris slammed down right next to her.
Had she been even a single step closer, she would have been crushed into a bloody pulp.
"L-Let's escape...! Q-Quickly...!"
"What is the current status of the situation?"
A massive man clad in dark iron armor spoke in a heavy, commanding voice.
His name was Regulus Serion, the head of the prestigious Serion family of knights and the commander of the Serion Knights.
He was currently assessing the situation, having arrived with one of the knight orders requested to support the academy.
"Yes, Lord Regulus Serion! The dark mage organizations are currently holding the students and staff hostage, barricading themselves inside!"
Another soldier in dark iron armor beside him reported promptly.
"I am aware of that. However... their movements are far too strange."
"...May I dare ask what you mean by that, Father?"
A blood-drenched young woman appeared by his side, asking in a cautious voice.
"Ah, Seraphina Serion. As expected, you are unharmed."
Regulus spoke with a blank expression, as if it would have been unacceptable for a member of the Serion family to be otherwise.
"It was nothing, Father. Most of them possessed utterly trivial skills."
She quietly flicked the dark mages' blood off her blade.
Though she had taken multiple lives, even if they were dark mages, her face remained cold and entirely devoid of emotion.
"Indeed... Just as they appeared, they do not seem to be properly trained. They lack experience as well. Furthermore, most of them are mere puppets."
Puppets—people controlled by the dark mages through their sinister spells.
"But precisely because of that, their current behavior is all the more concerning."
"...Please explain, Father."
"Do you still not see it? Well, though it is slightly disappointing, I suppose this is a learning opportunity for you. They are holding hostages, yet they have made no demands for negotiation. This is despite the building being on the verge of collapse. Furthermore, the dark mages deployed in this raid are a ragtag bunch of puppets. They are the perfect sacrificial pawns."
"Does that mean they have no intention of saving themselves, let alone the hostages?"
"Yes. They likely intend to drag everyone down with them."
"But even so, is that not strange? If their goal is mutual destruction, why have they not acted already?"
"They are dark mages. And dark magic, regardless of its scale, always demands life as a price."
"...Are they preparing something using the lives of the hostages as a sacrifice?"
"Yes. It could be a sacrifice to summon something, or they might be preparing another dark spell. Whatever it is, they planned this raid from the very beginning to use the academy's people as sacrifices. However..."
"Then should we not breach the building immediately?"
"That would be the correct course of action. However, if we launch a direct assault, they will slaughter the hostages first. Individually, their skills are pathetic, and the majority are puppets. This means there must be a leader commanding them. In a situation like this, there is only one thing to do. We must strike their leader first to shatter their chain of command, then suppress the rest in the ensuing chaos. Therefore, I will assemble a small elite squad to infiltrate secretly and assassinate the leader."
"...I will participate as well."
Seraphina Serion knelt and requested.
"You? Very well. The enemy's strength seems mediocre at best, so this will be a good opportunity to elevate your reputation. I will have the equipment prepared, so stand by."
"Sigh... This is boring as hell..."
Among the dark mages, who were all clad in identical black robes, there was one whose robe bore a distinct red pattern.
His name was Arise, a powerful member and executive of the dark mage organization, Brand.
Although his notorious cruelty often ruined missions, placing him at the bottom of the executive hierarchy, his sheer strength was undeniable.
His current mission was to inflict as much damage on the academy as possible.
And now, he was drawing a massive explosive magic circle that would use the hostages—both students and staff—as well as the dark mages themselves as sacrifices.
Of course, as a core executive, he was the sole exception. An artifact had been implanted in his body, allowing him to escape the moment the explosive magic circle was activated.
"Haah... So boring... boring... incredibly boring...!"
He had become a dark mage solely for the pleasure of watching people die.
Just a moment ago, he had been enjoying himself by slaughtering everyone in sight, but now he was stuck drawing tedious magic circles.
Granted, once this magic circle was complete, a massive explosion would trigger a grand massacre.
But when that time came, the artifact inside him would activate, preventing him from witnessing that beautiful sight firsthand.
Right now, he was itching to create victims with his own two hands.
However, a monitoring spell was currently cast on his robe.
It had been placed there to keep him in check, as his inability to suppress his sadistic nature often led him to kill crucial sacrifices during missions.
But Arise was not one to let such a thing get in the way of his fun.
He called over an ordinary dark mage who was standing guard.
He was one of the few actual members present in this raid, which consisted mostly of puppets.
"Hey, you. Come here."
"Yes? Me, sir?"
"Swap robes with me."
"Yes, understood."
It was a bizarre request, but as a member of a dark mage cult that fanatically obeyed superiors, the man complied without raising a single objection.
"And you, I've drawn the magic circle up to this point, so you can handle the finishing touches, right? I'm going to take care of some other business."
"It will slow down the activation compared to when you do it, Lord Arise, but I understand."
Wearing the plain black robe of an ordinary member, Arise quietly wandered deeper into the building.
The hostages in the Great Hall could not be touched, as they were to be the sacrifices for the explosive magic.
But what if there were those who resisted and tried to escape? That would be a different story.
Anticipating this, he had intentionally allowed a few of the hostages to escape beforehand.
Naturally, he hadn't forgotten to cast tracking spells on each and every one of them.
He quietly licked his lips as the locations of his prey flashed in his mind.