Chapter 330
Chapter 330. Charge! The Spy of the Capital City: Part One
The magic of Concealment shines in times of need.
A spell that silences footsteps, blurs one’s form, and makes it difficult for others to spot you—
But more than anything, it demonstrates its true worth when one wishes to suppress their magical presence.
Even beings with overwhelming magical power can remain undetected simply by laying low under the shroud of concealment. Although one must avoid using other spells while cloaked in this secrecy—doing so will break the concealment—it greatly expands one’s options for ambushes and infiltration, far outweighing the drawbacks.
Especially in urban areas teeming with obstacles, it’s incredibly valuable…
Just like now.
‘So this is it, the residence of Officia. Not a bad place at all.’
Antendeixis said with a somewhat disingenuous tone as we arrived at a certain apartment complex, guided by Barbara.
From what I gathered, Officia‘s room is on the third floor, right in the middle.
Finishing my ascent up the stairs, I glared at the wooden door in front of me.
“…………”
Straining to listen, no voices came from within. Just the faint sound of a pen scraping around. Working on some documents?
Well, whatever—it seemed she hadn’t noticed us either way.
I glanced back briefly.
Standing ready, Leila nodded in affirmation.
—Shall we?
I drew Adamas from its sheath. The blade glinted ferociously, the hilt trembling slightly with anticipation.
You’re eager, aren’t you, partner? Let’s feast to our heart’s content—without hesitation, I thrust Adamas straight into the center of the front door.
Thud! A dull sound echoed as the blade embedded itself. Simultaneously, the sound of writing ceased from within the room—
“Let there be light!”
I poured all my magical energy into Adamas.
The spell of concealment shattered, but it no longer mattered. The unleashed torrent of holy energy surged through the blade and wreaked havoc on the other side of the door, flooding the room.
“—Gyaaaaah!!!”
A man’s scream erupted from inside. But, was it just one person!? With Adamas still embedded, I pressed the skeletal gauntlet on my left arm against the doorknob.
The bones flowed into the keyhole, wedging perfectly and solidifying to unlock it. However, the door wouldn’t budge as it seemed to be barricaded!
—A bolt, huh!?
In the end, I smashed through the doorknob and charged in.
Behind me, Leila launched glowing orbs of light to illuminate the room.
First, I noticed a window directly in line with the front door. It was open—its rain shutter creaked ajar. In front of it, a figure was writhing on the floor, charred and smoking, attempting to crawl outside.
“Not on my watch.”
The skeletal hand in my left transformed into a sinister bone spear.
I hurled it.
Thud! The spear pierced the figure’s waist, shattering the lumbar vertebrae and pinning it to the ground.
“Giiiii!”
The figure let out a short, gritted scream, twitching like an insect specimen. Good, still alive.
Antendeixis.
“Here I go!”
Antendeixis leaped from within me and transformed into humanoid form. Without missing a beat, I connected Antendeixis and the figure with magical energy and used a teleportation spell to afflict it with pneumonic plague.
“Ahh, that feels nice!”
In stark contrast to the figure, unable to make a sound, Antendeixis took a refreshing deep breath before swiftly reverting back into me. That ailment of Antendeixis was resolved surprisingly quickly.
But there were no other figures in the room—
I yanked out the bone spear and casually kicked the slumped night elf. Though it was a bit hard to tell due to the scorched appearance, with its youthful features and distinctly fox-like face, this wasn’t Officia. Who the heck are you?
I figured it was best to thrust my weapon into the heart and put it out of its misery.
On the table were several documents, a list of supplies, and a half-completed—was that a passage permit? Were they forging it? At least there were two writing instruments!
I leaned out the window and looked down at the dimly lit street as the day ended.
“What…?”
“A fight?”
“No, it sounds more desperate than that…”
Though the figures below were sparse, all the passersby gazed up at us. The earlier scream must have drawn their attention.
Suddenly, from the roof of the building across the street, a semi-transparent Barbara peeked out, pointing toward the nearby alley—Hey, hey, did they manage to escape?
It seemed someone took advantage of the brief moment from when I lodged my sword in the door until the holy energy was released to flee. Quick thinking for an enemy. Good thing I had Barbara on lookout outside just in case.
“Leila.”
“Yes!”
I scooped up Leila and leaped from the window. A height of three stories. Focusing magical energy to my legs, I absorbed the shock of landing.
“Let’s go!”
Ignoring the startled passersby and following Barbara’s guidance from above, we dashed into the alley.
There’s no way I’m letting those night elves escape.
Let it be known that today is your last night!
†††
(Damn it, damn it! Now of all times…!)
Paulo Hoentz sprinted through the back alley with a strained expression.
His escape had been purely due to luck. He happened to be by the window.
At the moment he heard the abnormal noise of a blade being stabbed into the door behind him, he had instinctively leaned out the window. Unlike him, Howard, who was absorbed in forging permits, hadn’t managed to escape in time.
He must be charred black by now—
(My hand…my hand…!)
Paulo was not unscathed either; the fingers of his right hand, gripping the window frame, had been burned and blistered.
(At least Officia’s controller and Outluke weren’t around…!)
That was the silver lining.
When Officia said, “We’ll start moving from tomorrow,” Outluke suggested, “Why not start right away?” At this point, it seemed foolish to halt activities after sunset just to accommodate the humans. They’d decided to begin tidying up whatever they could.
So, Outluke headed to the Holy Church to arrange for healing while Officia went to procure treatment funds by opening the guild’s vault.
Howard began forging permits for those escaping the capital, and Paulo helped him—
And that’s when they were ambushed.
(So that letter was a trap!?)
Enduring the pain of his burned fingertips, Paulo pondered. …It seemed strangely unclear for a trap set by the Holy Church. Despite the sudden attack by a hero, the fact that he was escaping like this felt off.
(If this were the Holy Church’s extermination squad, it should have been more elaborate…!!)
At the very least, there should have been sword saints or priests waiting on the street in front of the house. Yet, there was no one. The ease with which he was able to run away felt suspicious.
(Could it be, this is a trap too?!)
Letting him run free to see where he flees to, perhaps. An increasingly paranoid Paulo looked around as he ran. The dagger at his waist felt infuriatingly inadequate. There didn’t appear to be any pursuers in sight, but…
“Gah!”
Reaching the corner, Paulo almost reflexively stopped in his tracks.
Because, ahead on the path, stood a priest draped in white.
He doubted it was a new enemy, but the priest’s leisurely pace raised alarms. Despite the fear of approaching, he hesitated on whether to turn back—
However, turning his heel to run from the appearance of a priest would look exceedingly suspicious.
(…No, I can use this!)
After a moment of hesitation, Paulo steeled himself. Concealing his burned hand, he hurried toward the priest with urgency.
“Priestess! Please help me!”
Feigning a face twisted with relief, Paulo cried out.
“I’m being chased by a killer! A murderer! Please, help me!”
Pointing over his shoulder with his left hand, Paulo implored. He hoped this would urge the priestess to rush in justice-filled fervor.
“Oh?”
However, the priestess’s response was not what he had anticipated.
Instead of rushing forward, she halted right in her tracks.
“…Something’s odd.”
With her hand on her chin, the priestess regarded Paulo with curiosity and suspicion.
Her name was— Edgar Wakonan, Senior Priest.
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