Chapter 23
I killed the bastard who kidnapped the young lady. He wasn't particularly tough, but he kept summoning those mob monsters, which made me worry that the young lady might get hurt by the chimeras.
It was the same principle as in the original game, where the minions who summon trash mobs are more annoying to deal with than the powerful bosses themselves.
And then there were the cries of the chimeras—or rather, the victims—that only I could hear.
-Kill me...
-Get me... out of here...
-I don't want it to hurt... aaah.
So I cut him down without a second thought. No guilt about it. I'd experienced it before anyway.
I believe all human lives are precious, but treating these vermin as the same kind of humans is just too disgusting.
"Lady Celine, are you okay?"
With the obstacles gone, I quickly approached her and checked her condition.
"H-how... did you get here?"
Her dress, dressed up for what was supposed to be a date, was now in tatters, and her face looked utterly haggard in such a short time.
The worst was her leg. The young lady's already slender leg was broken and swollen up hugely. If left like this in this filthy basement, it could lead to necrosis.
I picked up the young lady, who was limply sprawled on the floor.
Then I took off my overcoat and draped it over her face so she wouldn't see the outside.
"Hic... ugh..."
"Just hang in there a bit. There are some unsightly things outside."
I calmed her as she started to squirm because her vision was suddenly blocked.
On the way here, some annoyances had stuck to me, so I'd stirred things up quite a bit, making the scene quite unsightly in multiple ways...
Fortunately, she stopped struggling at my words.
Even though being held like this by me should have been embarrassing, her fear seemed greater, as I felt her body trembling slightly in my arms.
On the way out, she must have smelled the blood wafting around, because her body twitched, but she didn't have any major freakout.
Looking at the young lady who kept trying to bury her face in my chest out of fear, I gave a wry smile as I escaped the basement.
Of course, the outside was the same, littered with the guys I'd taken down.
It felt wrong to show her this carnage, so I moved to a spot where she wouldn't see them and set her down.
"Ah, ah..."
"It's okay. All the bad guys who tried to kidnap you are dealt with, so you can relax."
As she felt me trying to set her down, she hurriedly grabbed my shoulder.
Like a cat clawing to not be separated from its owner, she clutched my shoulder tightly, and I calmly reassured her.
"I contacted the duke's family before coming here, so they're probably searching for you right now. I need to let them know you're here, so can you let go for a moment?"
"......"
Nod.
The young lady, who nodded slightly, soon released her grip on me.
I'd only ever seen her tough side, and even during the academy incident, she'd shown a cool willingness to sacrifice herself. Seeing her so weakened like this made me feel sorry for her.
Before, it had been her own resolve to protect someone, and she could have escaped if needed. But now, her magic—her only means of escape—was sealed, and she'd never faced such pure murderous intent before, so fear was inevitable.
I gently set the young lady down and walked to an open area under the sky.
I pondered how to send a message, then decided on something simple.
I gathered aura into my sword to the brim and fired it straight into the sky!
Boom!!
Kaboom!!
Flash, kaboom!!
It wasn't as cute a sound as I'd imagined, but the duke's knights, who were surely still searching, would sense that this aura wave was no joke.
Plus, as a grand archmage, the duke would notice this wasn't ordinary Master-level aura and come rushing.
After firing my aura fireworks into the sky, I turned and headed back to the young lady.
"Well, I'll be off then."
"Wha? Huh?! Why? Whyyy?! D-did I do something wrong?! Sorry! I didn't mean to—!"
At my words that I was leaving, the young lady panicked, grabbing my pant leg and babbling incoherently.
Having been rescued from that hellhole, she must have been hit with anxiety symptoms at the sudden savior leaving.
"Don't worry. The people coming to rescue you are on their way. Hmm... does the duke know floating magic by any chance?"
"Huh? Uh... my dad should be able to..."
"Then it's definitely the duke."
My senses picked up something hurtling toward us at tremendous speed.
If he could use floating magic, it had to be Duke Euse.
"From what my senses tell me, the duke himself is flying right here. He'll arrive in 1 or 2 minutes."
"D-Dad..."
"Yeah. So relax. Getting involved any further won't end well for me, so I'll—"
"D-don't go!!"
As I tried to leave, she grabbed me urgently.
Her eyes were on me, but unfocused, and she kept trembling—it looked like serious anxiety.
"Is it because I've been so arrogant all this time? If so, I'll apologize! I was too arrogant, wasn't I? It wasn't on purpose, it just came out that way without me realizing—sorry, so— sob!"
"What are you talking about? Get a grip."
I gave a light flick to her forehead as she muttered nonsense like she was losing it.
Nothing beats a smack for delirium.
"I'm leaving because I've done what I needed to, and sticking around would just get annoying. If they start questioning me and my power gets exposed, how much hassle do you think that'll be?"
"...But you saved me. At least let me repay you or—"
"Repay me for saving a life? I don't know about other things, but you don't play games with people's lives."
The type I hate most are those who toy with others' lifelines.
Especially the ones who beg for their own lives when threatened.
Using human misery as gambling stakes is against my principles.
"So just keep quiet that I came and went. Say a masked benefactor saved you and left—that should be believable enough. They won't easily find someone of that skill level anyway."
"...Really... that's all?"
"Yes. That's enough."
I don't desperately need money or fame.
Well, thinking about the territory, I do need money, but the advance from the manager gig put out the urgent fire. And demanding money from someone whose life I just saved feels wrong even before business—inhuman, really.
"Got it... if you say so..."
The young lady looked like she couldn't quite accept it, but fortunately, she seemed to understand.
"The priests can heal your leg in no time. The duke's family must have high-grade potions stocked, so you'll recover fine."
"Yeah..."
"I'll come visit with Polo later. You can even get him to peel fruit for you, okay?"
"Yeah..."
No energy even at the mention of Polo. The terror from that basement lab must still be lingering.
Flick!
Pat-pat—
"Eek! Wh-what!?"
"Oh, you seemed really down, so I thought I'd comfort you..."
"Ugh...! Go! Go away quick!"
"Ah, got it..."
Hmm... yeah, it was a miss.
When I did this to the gloomy kids in the territory, they perked right up, but I guess it only works for handsome guys.
"Alright, I'm off. The duke will be here soon, so don't worry!"
"Ah, um... wait—!"
I felt the duke's presence getting closer, so I gave a quick goodbye and left.
She seemed to call me back at the end, but eh, probably nothing important.
"I... couldn't even say thank you..."
Celine stared blankly at the spot where Mars had disappeared.
The man who saved her from a den of madmen who didn't understand words.
A man who, at his young age, had achieved the historic feat of becoming an Aura Lord, yet wanted to hide it just because it was a hassle.
And... the man who had gently comforted her when she was scared.
Suddenly, the lingering warmth on her head turned her face bright red.
'M-my face is hot...! Hnngh, what do I do?!'
Celine couldn't forget the expression Mars had when looking at her.
When he burst through the firmly shut iron door of the basement and saw her, he looked relieved.
When he saw her leg, he showed fury like a wrathful deity on her behalf.
And then casually dispatching the culprit, comforting her in a gentle voice, reassuring her as she was gripped by fear—
For some reason, it made her heart pound like mad.
"Celineeeeeee!!!"
Then, a familiar voice echoed from afar.
"Dad?"
"Celine!! You're safe! Any injuries—"
Duke Euse, flying at the speed of light, landed lightly in front of her and checked on his daughter, then shifted his gaze to her leg.
"...Those fucking bastards!!!"
Mana surged in response to his emotions.
The beasts in the mountains fled in terror at the massive mana that instantly engulfed the area.
"...Dad, I'm fine, so hurry and take me to a priest. Gotta get treated quick."
"Huh? Oh, right, yeah."
But his mana vanished in an instant at his daughter's scolding.
Though rage boiled inside at those who did this to his daughter, she came first over such vermin, so he gently scooped her up, careful not to jostle her.
"By the way, I passed by but saw you out here, and the surroundings suggest it's already over. Did you escape on your own?"
"...No. Someone else saved me."
"Even though you hurt your leg, whoever saved you like this must be a true benefactor. Do you know who it was?"
"...No, not really. He wore a mask, and his voice was muffled. I don't know anything except that he was incredibly strong."
"Hmm... what a shame. I wanted to repay the benefactor who saved my daughter..."
"Yeah... me too..."
Soon, the duke's knights and mages arrived at the scene one after another, and the duke ordered a thorough investigation of the area before leaving to get his daughter treated.
As she flew in her father's arms, she stared endlessly at the spot where Mars had vanished.