「…I never expected that I’d be the one to be saved. But then, to think that a missing famous alchemist came out right from the get go. Gilldoum’s appearance really exceeded my worst-case scenario. So this is 『Devil’s Piper』, huh.」
Kreuz heaved a sigh while still holding on to the unconscious kid.
Right before him was half of Gilldoum’s body, sunk into his own pool of blood.
「Gilldoum Zirenass… How could a sorcerer of his caliber side with an anti-government organization… Even though he shouldn’t have any inconveniences in his life with the recognition he received from so many people.」
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「You over there, Kreuz. You said that you’re a member of the kingdom’s army.」
Lambert called out to Kreuz who was still immersed in his own world.
「…Who the hell are you? What’s your goal? If it’s someone of your caliber, there’s no way that I don’t know about you. And seeing that armor of yours which can repel Gilldoum’s sorcery so easily, could it be…?」
「Let’s set aside the matter about my identity for now. Since we have the same goal, you’ll naturally learn my name soon. That should be enough for now. We’re running out of time. We must see Viscount Le Gael’s reaction and see whether he will try to ambush us or escape with his tail between his legs. That aside, I need you to tell me about something. For what reason did you come to this region?」
「…I want to keep that matter a secret. But I guess it’s already too late now since I’ve revealed my identity to you.」
Kreuz looked at the kid he carried in his hands.
「Viscount Le Gael’s activity is way too conspicuous. Originally, we thought that he was not involved with 『Devil’s Piper』, but then… we learned from the citizens that there’s a mass abduction case running rampant in this area.」
Lambert had to agree since that said case happened right before him, twice.
A little investigation around the slums had revealed everything.
「The large-scale kidnapping incident itself is already big news… And yet, there are no traces of the kidnapped children being brought out of this region. I mean, carrying tens or hundreds of children out of this region needs proper preparation. And those preparations must’ve left some traces, but we found none of that. On the other hand, the number of slave merchants in this area is really limited. And there’s no sign of big spenders coming from outside of this region either. Thus, we’ve been wondering where all those kidnapped children were taken.」
「…I see, that’s definitely a strange incident.」
They had yet to find the reason why the lord of this territory kidnapped his own citizens.
But there was no doubt that the members of 『Devil’s Piper』 such as Gilldoum had already made a nest in this region.
With such blatant evidence, it was clear that the ones who wanted those children were definitely from 『Devil’s Piper』. Viscount Le Gael was only executing the orders from 『Devil’s Piper』.
‘The revolutionary organization is gathering children, huh… I can only imagine that they’re doing something nasty with those children.’
The first thing that came to his mind was the deed of Regios Kingdom’s alchemist during the Eight Countries Unification War era, the sage Domiliune.
She massacred a few villages just to create her flesh golem.
「Anyhow… I’ll take my subordinates along with me to return to the royal capital to relay this information and ask for reinforcements. I know that you’re not an ordinary person, but… don’t act too reckless. We don’t know what has been hiding in this region…」
「The enemy will escape if we don’t make our move as soon as possible. I’m more confused about the reason why you’re doing that. You should’ve realized that they’ll only bring more damage the longer you leave them to their own devices. Our enemy isn’t a fool. I came to this region since I knew that the bigshots of 『Devil’s Piper』, the Eight Wisemen, were hiding somewhere in this region. This is our only chance to bring them down.」
「E-Eight Wisemen? They’re not the kind of opponent that can be defeated in single combat! They’re a living disaster! Didn’t you hear about what happened to Barreira City? That incident almost destroyed the entire Barreira City, and the culprits behind that incident were one of the Eight Wisemen, Manzi the 『Ugly Old Man of The Revenant』, and a small number of his subordinates! Those people aren’t something that can be defeated by a mere investigation team like us!」
The one who single-handedly subjugated that old man was the man who stood right before him, Lambert, but Kreuz had no idea about that.
Although the heroic story of an undead knight riding a headless horse was circulating and spreading in Barreira City, the outsiders who didn’t see the situation first-hand would never believe such a story.
The story that was widely believed was the version about the lord’s private army joining hands with the adventurers, only managing to end the crisis after countless sacrifices.
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「Here I thought you’ve got some guts in you, but what a disappointment.」
Kreuz could only clench his lips in frustration since Lambert’s remark hit the sore spot in his heart.
「There’s a difference between recklessness and bravery. I don’t know what would happen if we alerted the Eight Wisemen. Moreover, our priority is to snatch the sovereignty from Le Gael and save the victims of the kidnapping case. Am I wrong?」
Lambert simply turned around without replying to Kreuz.
There was no use talking to Kreuz anymore.
「W-Wait, where are you going to go after this?!」
「Gathering information. I want to get the information about the whereabouts of the victims and the Eight Wisemen who came to this region.」
「But… Le Gael’s private army has no idea about this matter. 『Devil’s Piper』 kept this matter secret from them, and… even if we manage to capture one of the members, they’re extremely tight-lipped. My subordinates were currently investigating the matter of those vanishing children. They might be able to dig up something. Although we just met, I know that I can trust you with this information…」
「I have no time to wait for the result of that investigation. Moreover, I’ve found a perfect target. Only an extremely cowardly human would prioritize his own safety over the secret… despite knowing about 『Devil’s Piper』’s plan.」
「As if such a convenient person existed…」
「It’s Viscount Le Gael. I’ll break into the mansion and directly interrogate him.」
Kreuz couldn’t say anything back for a while.
He seemed to be pondering whether Lambert was joking or serious about his reckless plan.
Kreuz observed Lambert for a while, seemingly concluding something along the lines of 『It seems he is serious about his plan』.
「NO, NO, NO, NO, NO! THAT’S WAY BEYOND RECKLESS! HIS MANSION IS BASICALLY A STRONGHOLD, RIGHT?! ThERE’S A HIGH CHANCE THAT THE MEMBERS OF 『DEVIL’S PIPER』 ARE STATIONED IN THERE TOO… OR WORSE, YOU MIGHT EVEN BUMP INTO ONE OF THE EIGHT WISEMEN! I TOLD YOU A MOMENT AGO, RIGHT? THE EIGHT WISEMEN ARE AKIN TO A CALAMITY; EACH CAN SINGLE-HANDEDLY DESTROY AN ENTIRE CITY!」
Lambert started walking again as Kreuz shouted at him.
「L-LIKE HELL THIS KREUZ OF 『PHOENIX’S EYES』 WILL BACK DOWN, LEAVING AN ORDINARY PERSON TO HANDLE THE TROUBLE! I-I’M GOING WITH YOU TOO!」
Kreuz unsheathed his rapier with the other hand that wasn’t holding onto the kid… only to see it fall from his hand in the next moment.
His fingertips were twitching uncontrollably.
The recoil from his battle against Lambert had started to kick-in after the situation calmed down.
Normally speaking, 『Multi Drill』 was the kind of skill that put a lot of burden in one’s arms.
His arms were already screaming in pain when he used 『Third Drill』.
But Kreuz, who thought that he would be killed by Lambert once he stopped his attack, kept going onto the 『Fourth Drill』,『Fifth Drill』, and finally stopped at 『Seventh Drill』.
「T-This kind of pain is nothing as long as I regroup with my subordinates who can use white sorcery. That’s why please wa—!」
「That matter aside, I want you to return that kid over there to his family.」
「Eh?」
Lambert left in a hurry after he spoke, leaving the unconscious kid and bewildered Kreuz behind.
Kreuz was the second commander of 『Phoenix’s Eyes』. Although Kreuz still had some room for growth, Lambert didn’t have the leeway to babysit Kreuz when he invaded Le Gael’s mansion.
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