Chapter 122
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 122
Chapter Title: Revolution and Destruction are a Hair's Breadth Apart. (4)
BOOM! Crash!
Something seemed to be crumbling down.
And the sounds ringing in my ears felt like the clamor of battle.
"What was that?"
Scarlett, who was with me, jumped at the explosion and shouted.
"What happened?"
I immediately sensed something was wrong and asked one of the remaining assemblymen on the spot.
"...It's nothing. Please don't worry about it."
I caught their expressions shift for a split second as they said that.
Their gazes were clearly directed toward where Assemblyman Stick had headed.
That had to be what they were trying to hide.
And Mercen was probably there too.
"Something seems to have happened. We can't let anything happen to Sir Mercen or Principal Parus, so I'll go check right now."
I deliberately named Mercen and Parus to assert that we had the right to verify the situation as well.
"No, there's no need for that."
"If anything happens to Sir Mercen or Principal Parus, it could strain relations with the Empire."
"It's fine. This place is safe. I'll go check and come back, so please wait here."
Even after they said all that, they were still blocking us, which made it clear that whatever they were hiding was in there.
No other means of pushing further came to mind.
Were we really going to have to back off now that we were this close?
No, honestly, what worried me more was Mercen.
If something had happened to him right there...
Sending in one more person could put his life in even greater danger.
"I am the Empire's envoy. It shouldn't be strange for me to check on the safety of those who arrived first, right?"
I kept invoking the Empire's name on purpose.
This was the Empire's will—soon, the Emperor's will—and I made sure they stayed aware of that.
Implying that if anything happened to Mercen, they wouldn't get off scot-free either.
"I'm sorry, but that area contains state secrets, so outsiders can't enter."
"Then why are Sir Mercen and Principal Parus there?"
"...That's..."
Unable to come up with a response, the assemblymen started hesitating.
"Aren't you pushing too hard?"
Scarlett whispered to me quietly.
"We need to know what's going on. Something might have happened to Sir Mercen..."
BOOM! Crash!
Another explosion rang out.
This was no sound that could happen without something serious going on.
"...I'll go check."
Just as I was debating whether to force my way past these persistent blockers,
"Saint...!"
Mercen's urgent voice reached me.
"Sir Mercen...!"
Thankfully, he didn't look injured at all.
Given that he was holding his holy sword...
He must have been the one causing all the explosions.
"Catch that bastard...!"
Among those following behind Mercen was Parus, his eyes bloodshot.
His attitude toward his own son was utterly unrecognizable.
I could instinctively sense that something had finally blown up.
"Huff, huff... That man suddenly went berserk with mana! He attacked us!"
Assemblyman Stick, trailing behind, explained frantically.
"Mana rampage...? Why?"
"How should we know?! We want to ask him that!"
"...Ha, even in this situation, you lie. This is why evil must be eradicated. Saint, I'll explain everything."
To an outsider, they might have bought it—they were painting Mercen as the perpetrator without batting an eye.
".... They summoned an upper devil..."
"Ha! Accusing us of devil worship without evidence?! Can you take responsibility for that?!"
Assemblyman Stick flew into a rage.
Without evidence, Mercen's claim could indeed cause problems.
"We have evidence."
Mercen shot them a coldly chilling glare.
"Wh-what...?"
"Say something that makes sense! We're not devil worshippers! So of course the evidence is fake!"
"Right, if you have evidence, show it right now!"
The Mera Union representatives couldn't hold back their fury any longer.
"It's a recording crystal of everything that happened."
But their vile act came to a complete end with the recording crystal Mercen pulled out.
"What? A recording crystal?"
Assemblyman Stick's face, which had been red with anger, started to stiffen.
"Saint, we must inform the Empire immediately and punish the Mera Union."
The crystal he handed over contained footage of the Mera Union assemblymen and the devil.
And even the scene where Parus accused Mercen of being a double agent.
"Shit... You were recording that?"
"This won't do. We had no intention of touching the Empire's envoys..."
"But now that they know the truth, it's different."
"Kill them all here."
The assemblymen's faces, who had insisted on their innocence, all turned icy cold.
"Miss Scarlett, we need to run."
"Huh? You're not fighting them?"
"With our current forces, it's tough."
You have to know when to strike and when to bail.
The Mera Union was crawling with devil worshippers empowered by devils.
And our combat-ready personnel inside numbered just three.
Scarlett and Mercen.
And me.
Compared to them, I wasn't even that strong.
An ordinary A-rank adventurer couldn't stand against them.
So it was time to retreat.
We needed to combine forces with Jenny, Lin, and the Imperial Army.
And spreading the recording crystal Mercen brought could rally help from other nations too.
"If they come at us full force, escaping will be hard."
"I'll draw their attention."
Mercen stepped forward.
"No, it's dangerous. Sir Mercen. With our current power..."
"It's fine. Don't I have the power of light now, Saint? I'll purify them all."
"Light power doesn't work well on half-devils."
Mercen widened his eyes at my words.
"Is that... so...? No wonder they withstood it better than regular devils..."
"So we need to focus everything on escaping."
After Mercen had already caused a ruckus, they wouldn't let us go easily.
"Fight with all you've got. But remember, the ultimate goal is to shake them off and retreat. Keep that in mind."
Neither Mercen nor Scarlett would have a positive view of retreating.
That's why I emphasized it extra.
"Yes, Saint. I'll follow your lead."
"Okay, if Big Brother Kane says so."
The good thing was that both of them listened to me well.
"Haha, you think you can run? This is our turf. You really think you'll escape?"
The battle I'd hoped to avoid was now inevitable.
I drew my dagger and scanned for their weaknesses first.
Of course, I knew they wouldn't be easy to spot, but everyone had one.
"You take Mercen, Parus."
"...Got it."
Parus, who had abandoned even his own son, was just revolting.
"Everyone, be careful...!"
#
There had been a fierce battle, and we'd taken some minor injuries.
But the result was success.
We were still being pursued, but we'd managed to escape somehow.
"They're definitely strong."
"Yeah. That was surprising."
"..."
Mercen stayed silent.
Clashing swords with his father in a genuine intent to kill was probably a first for him.
I could understand his complicated feelings.
"First, we need to contact Miss Jenny."
"Oh, right. They're probably still waiting for reinforcements over there."
Since things hadn't gone according to plan, we had to check their battle situation and adjust our strategy.
I pulled out the communication orb pre-linked to Jenny's side and tried connecting.
"Miss Jenny, can you hear me?"
After a brief silence from the orb, her voice came through.
"(Ah, Big Brother Kane! Yeah, I hear you loud and clear!)"
I explained the situation up to now into the connected orb.
Parus's complete betrayal and the need to inform the Empire about the recording crystal Mercen had captured.
"So, sending reinforcements to the Pacific Kingdom seems impossible now."
No fool would send aid to the Pacific Kingdom in this situation.
"(Got it! Alright, we'll wrap up Pacific Kingdom and join you right away!)"
"You sure that's okay?"
"(Of course! I was actually thinking it was a shame we couldn't!)"
She really was reliable.
Thinking it was a shame, huh.
"(Ah, Sir Kane...!)"
Lin's urgent voice came through the orb as well.
"Ah, yes. Lin!"
"(Leave this side to us...!)"
"Understood. I'm counting on you two."
The heartwarming encouragement ended with the communication cutting off completely.
"Alright, then until Miss Jenny and Lin join us, our goal is to completely escape this area."
We were still being chased.
And we hadn't left Mera Union territory yet.
Now that we'd shaken their eyes, it was our chance.
"Okay, let's go."
"Sir Mercen, are you alright?"
I spoke to Mercen, who hadn't said a word since earlier, seemingly still in shock.
"Ah, yes... I'm fine. Sorry, Saint..."
"No need. I understand completely."
"For now... we'll have to deal with the turmoil after we escape."
I nodded to Mercen, who seemed to have steeled himself with a resolute expression.