Chapter 74: Baron Ashro’s Estate 5
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 74: Baron Ashro’s Estate 5
"As I mentioned yesterday, today we head to the Ashro Barony to track down the Phantom Thief Cardinal and recover the family heirloom."
The students of the Special Class listened intently to every word Professor Elicia spoke.
Gulp.
The sound of someone swallowing hard echoed through the room.
It was understandable, considering this was their first official mission from the Academy. Academy missions varied wildly; some carried no risk at all, while others had historically resulted in student fatalities.
Of course, those deaths were stories from over twenty years ago.
As long as Professor Elicia was with us, no one was going to die on a mission. To be honest, even if the entire Barony went mad and everyone there attacked us at once, Elicia could kill them all with a single flick of her finger.
A thought suddenly occurred to me.
Did Professor Elicia know that what the Phantom Thief Cardinal stole from Baron Ashro was actually drugs?
I can always ask her later.
I glanced at Sepia, who was sitting next to me. Her face was clouded with anxiety and confusion.
"Miss Sepia, is something the matter?"
"Well, it’s just... Sigh..."
"Miss Sepia, you don't even have to say it. I already know what's bothering you," I said in a tone that suggested I understood everything.
"Huh?"
"You're nervous about the mission, aren't you? Everyone feels that way during their first one. There’s no need to be so afraid."
"That’s not it at all!!" Sepia barked, snapping at my teasing tone.
"No talking," Professor Elicia said, narrowing her eyes at Sepia.
"But the Pushover started it—"
"Did you hear that, Miss Sepia? Professor Elicia is speaking. You should be quiet."
"You...! Sigh... Never mind."
Sepia turned her head away from me as if she were sulking.
"Are you sulking?"
"No."
"You're definitely sulking."
"I said I'm not!"
The worry on Sepia’s face had faded slightly. In truth, I knew exactly why she looked so troubled.
It’s probably because of what she found while following the spirits during her free time yesterday.
What Sepia had found was her Awakening Key. Unlike the time I helped Clara find her book, this wasn't something I could just fix for her.
"By the way, how are we getting to the Ashro Barony?" Lucas asked Professor Elicia.
"You'll find out once you follow me outside. Everyone, move out."
With that, Elicia headed for the exit. The students followed her, their faces filled with curiosity.
"""..."""
Everyone fell silent the moment they saw what was waiting where Elicia had stopped.
A massive frame, blue scales covering its entire body, razor-sharp claws, a long tail, and finally, a pair of wings.
"A Wyvern?"
Even Clara’s voice trembled with shock.
Just as she said, a Wyvern was perched in a corner of the Academy grounds.
"Professor? You don't mean... we're riding that?" Lucas asked, staring blankly at the creature with wide eyes.
"I do. Is there a problem? Don't worry about falling off. I've tamed this one myself."
Despite her reassurance, the students took a step back, looking at the Wyvern with disbelief. Common sense dictated that it was impossible for a human to tame a Wyvern.
But Professor Elicia was a Dragon.
And Wyverns were a subspecies of Dragons. A Wyvern could never defy the command of a Dragon.
"Oh! Professor, can I try getting on now?"
"Of course. You'll be riding it anyway."
I hopped onto the Wyvern’s back.
"The ride's not bad, actually! Everyone, hurry up and get on."
Seeing me move around casually on the creature's back seemed to ease the tension. One by one, the other students cautiously climbed up.
"Eek! I can't do it! I'm not getting on that thing!"
Frederick was terrified and refused to climb up until the very end.
"Kuran, grab him and throw him up."
"Good idea!"
The problem was solved instantly as Kuran snatched Frederick up and tossed him onto the Wyvern.
Once she confirmed everyone was aboard, Elicia climbed up last and spoke.
"Depart."
At her command, the Wyvern took flight with a powerful roar.
Whoooooosh!
It began to fly at an incredible speed. The sound of the wind was deafening, but we didn't feel the blast against our faces—likely because Elicia was using magic to block the wind.
Traveling at a speed incomparable to a carriage, we soon arrived at the Ashro Barony.
"We're already here."
"Gah!"
Frederick, who had fainted the moment the Wyvern took off, opened his eyes only to realize he was still on its back and promptly fainted again.
Perhaps they hadn't expected us to arrive on a Wyvern? Baron Ashro and his servants, who had been waiting for us, stood there with their mouths agape.
Looking at the Baron’s face, I recalled his actions from the game.
How he used drugs to turn a peaceful village into a den of murderers. How he lived a life of greed while driving the villagers to such a state.
Stand.
I stood up on the Wyvern’s back before it had even touched the ground.
"Pushover?" Sepia called out my name, her voice laced with confusion.
"I'm heading down first."
"Huh? What do you mean—"
Before Sepia could finish, I leapt off the Wyvern’s back. Gravity took hold, and I plummeted toward the ground at high speed.
Whish!
This time, I felt the wind properly. It pushed against me as if trying to reject me, but it couldn't overcome the force of gravity.
Directly beneath me was Baron Ashro.
If I swung a sword right now, I could kill him instantly. But I couldn't kill him yet. I needed to find out who was manufacturing the drugs first. Then it wouldn't be too late to deal with him.
But I can at least do this much.
I twisted my body slightly and landed right in front of Baron Ashro’s nose.
CRASH!
The shockwave from my landing sent the Baron tumbling backward.
"Oh dear, are you alright? I seem to have lost my footing and slipped."
"Who are you?! Identify yourself!"
I kindly extended a hand to the fallen Baron, but the surrounding knights drew their swords and pointed them at me.
"Take your hands off my student."
Professor Elicia appeared beside me out of nowhere. As she spoke, every knight in the vicinity was forced to their knees by an invisible pressure.
"Wow! 'My student'... Professor Elicia, I'm so touched—Ack!"
Elicia let out a sigh and delivered a sharp finger flick to my forehead.
"You, stop acting out."
Soon, the Wyvern landed, and the rest of the students climbed down.
"You're not hurt, are you?"
"I'm fine, except for my head where the Professor hit me."
Once the students were gathered, Baron Ashro glared at me once before approaching Lucas to offer a greeting.
"I greet His Imperial Highness, the Crown Prince."
Following that, Baron Ashro began to play the victim in front of Lucas and Clara. He spouted nonsense about how the Phantom Thief Cardinal had stolen not only the family heirloom but all of his wealth as well.
It was so pathetic I couldn't even bring myself to laugh.
"I have been struggling so much lately—"
"I can't even begin to imagine the heartbreak of losing a family heirloom. I will make sure to catch that wicked thief for you."
I cut the Baron off mid-sentence. Come to think of it, the Baron had claimed that what I stole was a family heirloom.
"By the way, what exactly was the heirloom that Cardinal stole?"
I wondered how he would answer.
"It is a sword that has been passed down through our family for generations."
So, they're calling drugs 'swords' these days?
The fantasy world really is something else.
"But are you injured in the abdomen?"
Baron Ashro had bandages wrapped around his waist. He’d probably wrapped them prominently just to look more pitiable.
"I was injured while hunting a magic beast..."
Hunting a magic beast, my foot. He was likely injured because I’d kicked him in the gut before I made my exit with the drugs.
"Wow~ You are truly brave."
"Ahaha. More importantly, Lady Adelian, I apologize for meeting you in such a state—"
"So, what does this 'sword' heirloom look like?"
"Your Highness..."
"Baron, what exactly happened that day?"
I continued to cut off Baron Ashro every time he tried to speak to Clara or Lucas. I could feel him glaring at me for my blatant interruptions.
But what are you going to do about it?
There was nothing he could do besides glare. The other students looked at me a bit strangely, but since they probably thought jumping off a Wyvern was weirder, they didn't pay much attention to my behavior.
"Professor, what should we do first?"
"This is your mission. I won't help unless your lives are in danger."
Elicia told us to handle it ourselves, so we discussed our plan. A few would go inside the manor with the Baron to look for traces, while the rest would split into teams to search the surrounding area.
"Miss Sepia, I look forward to working with you."
"...Hmph!"
I ended up in a team with Sepia. Our task was to walk around the village and gather information. To avoid standing out, I used an illusion to change our appearances, and we strolled through the peaceful village.
The sound of laughter was constant.
"Take my sword!"
"No, you take mine! I am the greatest knight!"
Children played at being knights with tree branches, while the adults nearby watched them with smiles. This village would never fall into the grip of drugs now.
"Mom, wait for me!"
"If you don't hurry up, I'm leaving you behind!"
"Hahaha!"
A family passed by us, looking perfectly happy. Sepia watched them with a wistful gaze.
I knew why she was looking at them like that, but I couldn't say anything to her. I couldn't pretend to understand her pain just because of what I knew from a game.
All I could do was stand still and wait in silence while she watched that family.
Sepia Rivayden.
Originally a girl from a small but happy village. But one day, due to someone's 'prank,' everyone in the village except for her was killed.
Sepia knew the face of the person who killed her villagers, but she knew nothing of their identity.
The name of the man who slaughtered Sepia’s village for a joke was Betzdo.
He was the Rank 10 Necromancer of Death Heaven.