Chapter 23
Chapter 23
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Noble Lady Kidnapping Incident
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Just after a brilliant flash erupted at the north gate entrance of Libertà and faded away.
The executives of the Ebony Shadow Mercenaries, O'Brien and Sophia, recovered their momentarily stolen vision and quickly scanned the surroundings.
"That light just now..."
"It felt different from regular magic. It wasn't the kind of light made from fire or lightning spells. What the hell was it?"
"Could it be an imperial holy warrior?"
At Sophia's words, O'Brien whipped his head around.
"A holy warrior?!"
"I've only seen it in records, but they say a holy warrior's light has a mana flow that's completely different from normal magic or swordsmanship. I can't think of anything else that explains that light from earlier. Just because their holy swords don't glow doesn't mean they can't wield light itself—I've never heard otherwise."
"True, I've heard the imperial holy warriors are desperate for visible results right now. Has this place been marked as the spot to rack up those 'results'? Teaming up with worthless kingdom nobles? An arrogant fledgling holy warrior and a sheltered noble miss cooking up some cheeky plan."
The two executives stared beyond the north gate, observing the enemies' movements.
The noble brat named Lenis, who had been blustering loudly until moments ago, along with the presumed holy warrior who had dashed out and unleashed the light—and their two companions—were nowhere to be seen.
"Looks like that noble kid and the holy warrior's group have fled."
"Did they notice we're here?"
"Probably. Even with all the bad rumors flying around, a holy warrior would have the basics down. They'd sense our presence even if we're disguised."
"Then what about those guys?"
At Sophia's question, O'Brien charged magic into both hands.
With Lenis vanishing, the soldiers she had brought were milling about in confusion, not knowing what to do.
O'Brien slowly walked toward the restless soldiers as he spoke.
"We'll spare a few to spread the word, then slaughter the rest. As an example for daring to mess with our hideout."
"You sure that's okay? Even if the kingdom's too pathetic to touch us here, they won't just sit still after something like that."
"Doesn't matter. And did you forget the demands our boss got from the big client recently?"
At O'Brien's words, Sophia grinned and drew swords from both hands.
"'Take as many lives as possible and make them bleed, no matter who they belong to'... right? But can we manage it with just that many?"
"As long as they serve as the fuse, that's enough."
"Fair point. Too bad we didn't get to sever that insolent bitch's head and send it over."
Sophia clicked her tongue and charged toward the soldiers alongside O'Brien and the other Ebony Shadow mercenaries.
After pulling away from the scene, Ravi took the lead, Lenis slung over her shoulder and mouth muffled. Elfin and I followed close behind.
"Mmmph! Mmph!!"
The captured Lenis twisted and struggled in protest, but Ravi's brute strength was overwhelming—she could do nothing but be carried along.
I wore a mask, while the other two had hoods pulled low, so Lenis had no idea her kidnappers were us.
"Mmph! Mmmph!!"
Fearing pursuit from the Ebony Shadow Mercenaries, we ran nonstop for hours without rest. Only when our stamina hit its limit did we stop midway up some nameless mountain.
"Haa... haa..."
"Heok... heok..."
"Huff... huff... Let's... huff... stop here for now."
Only then did Ravi set Lenis down and release the hand over her mouth.
Still clueless about our identities, Lenis immediately backed away, conjuring flames in one hand to threaten us.
"W-What are you scum?! Kidnapping me, the elegant daughter of the Valentin Count family—do you really think you'll get away with it?! Planning to demand ransom or something!? No wonder people living in this filthy sewer of a city are—"
"Haa... haa... Lenis, calm down. It's us."
Ravi pulled off her hood to soothe her.
Her pink bunny ears, flattened under the hood, sprang back up, and her face came into view. Lenis's eyes went wide.
"Heok... cough... What the hell kind of ordeal is this..."
Elfin removed her hood too, drawing Lenis's gaze at once.
"R-Ravi...? Elfin...?"
Seeing her closest friends from academy days—always together—Lenis froze for a few seconds before grasping the situation and relaxing her face.
"Ravi! Elfin! What are you doing here?! I never imagined you'd be the ones who took me! How did you end up in a place like Libertà?! No, forget that—why did you suddenly kidnap me? Is this some kind of prank?"
"Well..."
"Sorry, Lenis. No time for chit-chat back there. And we don't know the full details ourselves. Why not ask him?"
Elfin thumbed at me—I still had my hood and mask on.
Lenis approached with a bright smile.
"There's only one guy you two hang out with! Never thought we'd meet like this! So glad to see you, Bra... ack."
As I removed my hood, Lenis stopped short. Instead of the black hair she expected, it was brown.
Spotting my face, she reacted much like Ravi and Elfin had before.
"Nice to meet you, girl. My name's not Brayden—it's Alvis. Not that it's been ages."
Lenis stared at me in disgust, then turned to Ravi and Elfin.
"Ravi! Elfin! Why is this guy here? Why are you traveling with him? Ravi, I get you're too nice to say no, but Elfin, you got done dirty by—"
"Lenis... please, don't remind me."
Elfin, who had been stripped down to her panties in front of everyone by the old Alvis, spoke with a gloomy expression. Realizing her mistake, Lenis hurriedly apologized.
"Ah... s-sorry. Ahem, anyway! There was this blinding light, and when I came to, you guys were kidnapping me and running? Care to explain what's going on?"
"That's what I want to ask."
With my breathing steadied, I stepped up to Lenis.
"What do you mean?"
"What were you thinking, bringing just that handful of troops all the way to Libertà? Even if it was a joyride, it's ridiculous—and you go provoking all the riffraff there with your nonsense? You got a death wish or what?"
Being scolded by her kidnapper—no, by me, whom she'd treated like trash back at the academy—left Lenis dumbfounded mid-kidnapping.
After a few seconds of blank staring, she suddenly got it and exploded.
"Who the hell are you yelling at?! Alvis, you scum, you're lecturing me?!"
"You did something lecture-worthy! Why the hell did you go there? You kingdom folk know better than anyone what Libertà is like! What, thought you'd scavenge something?"
"Shut up! I don't have to hear that from you!"
"If we hadn't shown up, your head would've been rolling! Think Libertà's full of useless trash with no skills? Banned researchers, mercenaries who've murdered their employers, freaks of every stripe! As a kingdom girl, you know Head Collector O'Brien, right?!"
Lenis's face twisted like she'd heard a name she shouldn't have.
"W-Why bring up that psycho maniac—"
"Where do you think that shadowy serial-killer mage psychopath slunk off to? Blood Rose Sophia, too—Jack-o'-Lantern Edmund! They're all in Libertà! While you were spouting madness in front of it, O'Brien and Sophia were watching you!"
Everyone on the continent knew Head Collector O'Brien and Blood Rose Sophia—not just the kingdom.
Hearing two of those child-silencing nightmare killers had been eyeing her up close, Lenis went pale as a corpse.
"We grabbed you in a hurry because those bastards were gearing up to take your head!"
"L-Lies..."
Unfortunately, Ravi and Elfin backed me up.
"Lenis, it's not total BS. Couldn't ID them in the crowd, but I felt a few with insane mana. And that creepy blood stench—gave me chills. Probably killers drenched in human blood mixed in there."
"I overheard voices too. Some debating what to do with you, others saying just kill you. Don't know if they could've pulled it off, but... yeah, some wanted you dead."
No reason for Ravi and Elfin to side with me here, and they weren't the type to scare her with empty bravado anyway.
With their vouching, Lenis's pupils finally trembled.
"Wait, then the troops I brought..."
"With O'Brien and Sophia on site, the soldiers are all dead now that their sight's back. Thanks to your stunt."
"N-No..."
Lenis's legs gave out, and she collapsed onto the dirt, trembling.
I didn't give her time to wallow in regret. Crouching in front of her, I pressed on.
To handle this spoiled brat right now, I needed the whip, not the carrot.
"You stirred up Libertà with your 'purification' nonsense, got your guards killed—so you better own up. What the hell were you thinking? Spill it."