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Pabab, a shadow crossed the streets of Strabenher. Bouncing lightly, or perhaps fluttering, the small shadow traversed the city, sometimes climbing over obstructing walls, other times leaping across the surface of canals, drawing large and small parabolic trajectories throughout the city.

With fluid, nimble movements, the shadow moved effortlessly over buildings and canals, a sight so smooth that anyone who saw it would rub their eyes in disbelief and exclaim in admiration. But for the runner, there was no room in their heart to care about such gazes.

Jumping between rooftops, Maria clicked her tongue softly. Even as she hurried, her eyes darted across the city. What she was tracking were the suspicious movements of people splitting off into the city’s alleys.

Before meeting Sophia and Conra, she had been dealing with enemies in Valencia’s back alleys, so distinguishing the ill intentions and movements of those lurking in the shadows was relatively easy for her.

On her way to the Strabenher Church’s assembly hall, Maria felt alarm bells ringing in her mind as she noticed movements in over thirty locations.

“Tch, there are too many. It seems like they’re moving with a purpose… Who could it be?”

Even as she pondered, her movements didn’t stop. With a single breath, Maria’s figure, using the light-footed technique of water-walking, leaped onto the roof of another three-story building and began running again.

Her hurried steps paid off, and soon Maria appeared on the rooftop of a building near the Strabenher Church.

“A bit late, huh?”

The assembly hall was already surrounded by numerous thugs hiding in the shadows of the alleys, preparing for an assault. They seemed to be waiting for sunset, observing the church’s movements. But that wasn’t the only problem.

“Over there, near the Merchant Guild and the Stock Exchange… What on earth is going to happen?”

The attackers weren’t just gathering around the church. Scattered groups moved through the back alleys, sometimes intimidating or coaxing residents, other times silencing them with a hint of blood, all converging near the Merchant Guild and the Stock Exchange.

“The church is one thing, but the Merchant Guild and the Stock Exchange too? No way!”

Maria cut off her thoughts with a shake of her head.

“Anyway, the only place I can help is the church. The rest is beyond my concern. But…”

It would be good to gather as much information as possible. With that in mind, Maria leaped from the rooftop, aiming for a secluded alley. There, a few attackers were crouched, hiding in the shadows.

Their actions, meant to conceal their presence, were ironically their downfall.

“Huh? Something feels off above…”

One of the men instinctively sensed danger but didn’t fully grasp the situation before a shadow, like a feline animal, descended upon him.

With a crack, his neck twisted, and he lost consciousness before he could understand what happened. The same fate befell the other three. In the blink of an eye, the shadow—Maria—had incapacitated all four.

“Phew, managed to take them out without a sound.”

The real game hadn’t even started, but her heart was already racing. For Maria, this moment was the real deal, diving headfirst into the situation.

Her previous escapes in Valencia and the events at the Cadiz Spell Tower under Sophia’s supervision were nothing compared to this.

“No, it’s not different.”

Maria calmed her racing heart with a single thought. No matter the situation, she was the one who had to deal with it and break through. Any fight, no matter the opponent, was about assessing the enemy and emerging victorious.

“More importantly, I need to do what I have to do. Hopefully, these guys know something useful…”

She didn’t waste time worrying about how to make them talk. She had already learned the ultimate torture technique from her mentor.

Pabab!

Her fingers struck the pressure points of the four men lying on the ground, and soon they woke up, eyes wide, screaming in silence.

“……!!!”

But no sound came out. Their bodies were stiff, unable to move, and their screams were silent. They were horrified, but more than that, they were in excruciating pain.

Cracks and pops echoed from their bodies as their bones and tendons twisted unnaturally. It felt like ants were crawling and biting all over, and needles were scraping through their veins.

The pain, unlike anything they had ever felt, was relentless. The exquisite control of the pain’s intensity made them despair quickly.

They wished they could just confess everything and die cleanly. It didn’t take long for them to reach that point.

+++++

Maria wiped the cold sweat from her brow.

“Took too long… I’m late.”

By the time she had extracted all the information from the attackers about their motives and who sent them, the situation had already escalated. The western sky was dyed with twilight, and the rest of the sky turned a deep grape color. The attackers hidden in the dark alleys were ready to carry out their mission.

And then, in an instant, the city was in chaos. The buildings housing the Merchant Guild and the Stock Exchange were engulfed in flames. The black smoke and red flames rising into the night sky suggested the fire was far from small.

“No, this isn’t the time to worry about that.”

That was for the city’s authorities to handle. Regardless of what happened there, Maria’s focus had to be on the church.

“The assembly hall is currently closed for a ceremony.”

Conra was in seclusion, completing the final task left by Sophia. Despite his extraordinary abilities for his age, Conra was now completely defenseless, his senses severed, wandering in a vague consciousness.

“I won’t let anyone lay a hand on Conra!”

Clenching her fists, Maria blended into the crowd gathering around the church, moving as if she were one of them.

Finally, when an unusually large number of people had surrounded the church, the church itself sensed something was wrong. With the fire at the Merchant Guild and the Stock Exchange already drawing attention, the church’s defenses were on high alert.

Creak, thud!

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

The entrance connecting the church’s interior and exterior was sealed shut, and the drawbridge over the canal was raised. The moat around the church now functioned as a defensive barrier.

The bell tower rang urgently, signaling an emergency.

“Tch, they noticed. Attack!”

Realizing their assault had been detected, the attackers moved swiftly.

With the entrance sealed and the drawbridge raised, the Strabenher Church was now a fortress. Unlike the more open upper floors, the first floor was designed to be a sanctuary, completely cut off from the outside world.

In other words, the attackers were now facing a siege.

Fortunately or unfortunately, the attackers seemed prepared for this. As the church closed its gates and raised its defenses, they immediately brought out ladders and hooks to scale the walls.

Watching from within the crowd, Maria sighed softly.

“There are too few of us…”

With most of the capable fighters gone to the Empire, those left to defend against the siege were at a disadvantage.

“According to Master Sophia, the attacking side needs three times the strength of the defenders.”

Maria recalled Sophia’s words, trying to make sense of the situation. But soon, she closed her eyes tightly.

“No matter how I look at it, they have more than three times our numbers…”

One cannot fight ten with one hand. This was evident in the fact that attackers needed only three times the strength of defenders in a siege. And the number of thugs attacking the church clearly outnumbered the defenders by more than three times.

The absence of overwhelming strength was painfully felt. The clergy, who would have been formidable against demons or monsters, were only moderately trained against fellow humans.

The only reason they had held out so far was that the Strabenher Church, like many other buildings in the city, didn’t occupy a large area…

Realizing she couldn’t wait any longer, Maria gritted her teeth and sprang into action.

Slipping away from the crowd, Maria moved like a snake through the dark underbrush, her movements smooth and agile.

Her first target was one of the thugs carrying a new ladder to replace the broken ones.

“Huh!?”

The thug sensed someone approaching from his blind spot but only managed a single gasp before his jaw was dislocated, knocking him out. Maria snatched the ladder he was carrying.

She then began to move through the crowd of attackers, wielding the ladder like a lance.

“Yahhh——!!!”

Though a ladder, it was essentially two long poles connected by rungs. While a bit unwieldy, it could still be used like a spear or a club.

The thugs scattered in panic as Maria charged at them with the ladder.

“Hmph, you little brat, your rampage ends here!”

Some tried to stop her, but unfortunately for them, there was a decisive difference in skill between them and Maria.

With the flowing movements of Sphere Exercises and the subtle techniques of Lannachar she had learned from Conra, Maria’s body moved with the ladder in hand, making it impossible for any thug to stop her.

As she knocked down thugs left and right, Maria’s eyes caught sight of someone climbing over the church’s first-floor wall to the open second floor.

“Danger!”

In an instant, Maria moved.

“Haaap!”

“Wha—what!?”

“Is that… Sister Maria!?”

Using the ladder like a pole vault, Maria’s figure soared and landed gracefully on the church’s second floor. The attackers and clergy alike stared in shock, but Maria paid no heed.

Landing on the second-floor corridor, Maria quickly moved toward the attackers who had also reached the second floor.

With a single motion, she flung the thugs out of the church building. Then, running through the corridors and hallways with the ladder, she began sweeping the attackers off the walls like a broom.

Ignoring the cries of those whose wrists she had broken with the ladder, Maria continued to run through the assembly hall. She thought she could buy time until the city calmed down and help arrived for the church.

“Kuk, I heard all the strong ones had left, but it seems there’s still a pesky enemy left.”

With a crack, Maria shook off the force transmitted through her hand and thought.

“Damn… There’s a strong one among them.”

The ladder… was already broken and unusable. Tossing aside the “former ladder,” Maria assumed a martial stance. It seemed she would have to fight bare-handed from now on.

 

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