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“By the way, do you know Erica?”

“Huh? Oh, that girl? She’s my student, we often communicate.”

I thought it was strange how she only said what she wanted, but it seems we have a teacher-student relationship.

“What did she say about me?”

“Oh, she mentioned you~ said you were a stubborn troublemaker who bossed her around.”

“Hmm… Is that so?”

So she’s been talking behind my back, huh? Just wait until we get back to the Magic Tower; I won’t let her off easy.

“Hehehe.”

Seeing my expression, Anubis spoke seriously.

“Stella, people aren’t sweet potatoes.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“You can’t just throw anyone to the ground when you’re angry.”

“…Do you want me to throw you instead?”

“Sorry, that was unintentional.”

What a pure expression he has.

Does he really think I just stab anyone when I’m upset? I only target those who deserve it.

“Looks like everyone’s almost here, so stay quiet.”

At the homeroom teacher’s words, I looked ahead to see a fairly large mansion appear.

“So this is their hideout?”

The garden is spacious, and the mansion is quite massive.

To set up shop here in the capital of the Empire, huh?

“This area is a newly developed commercial district, so they must be quite confident,” the homeroom teacher said, drawing a sword from the inside of their robes and instantly smashing the iron gate to pieces.

“…Is that really okay?”

“We don’t need an arrest warrant for criminals.”

“Is it fine not to call for backup?”

“It’s fine; there’s no time for that. They must have caught on because of the guy I captured. We need to catch them before they escape.”

“Right, we must rescue Amy as soon as possible.”

“I’m sure you won’t listen even if I tell you this place is dangerous and to hurry back to the Academy, right?”

Well, what’s the point of saying that now?

“We’ve come this far; isn’t it too late to say that, teacher?”

“I must save the children.”

With that, the homeroom teacher sighed and continued.

“Ugh… Well, I suppose it’s okay since it’s you guys. From now on, I’ll be formally requesting as the leader of the Imperial Army, not as a mentor, to find the shining star of the Magic Tower and the rabid dog of the Empire.”

“…Please don’t call me that nickname.”

“What’s… a rabid dog?”

*

A figure walked down a corridor deep inside the mansion.

“…Still the same twisted taste,” he muttered.

Mummified bodies of little girls were lined up in the hallway.

“Seriously, are all the higher-ups completely insane?”

Gwen, an Organization Member who entered Melian following the boss’s orders, frowned as he passed through the corridor.

“Damn it, why did I have to take on such a task?”

Complaining, Gwen arrived at a door and caught the sound of crying from within.

“Ha… I really don’t want to go in.”

With a creak, as he opened the door, what unfolded before Gwen was a horrifying sight.

Body parts were scattered around, and he could smell the sickly sweet scent of blood. In glass tubes, the remains of children were preserved.

“What? Who told you to come in here?”

An annoyed woman’s voice echoed, clearly irritated that someone had intruded during her work.

“Oh, greetings, Lady Isabel. My name is Gwen,” he stammered, desperately rubbing his palms together despite having fingers only stubs.

Ignoring him, the woman gazed at a girl tied up and weeping, her expression one of rapture.

“Ah… children are the best… this skin! The vitality! So beautiful…”

“Wah… Please save me…”

‘That crazy woman.’

Even being involved in trafficking himself, he had no words to express his feelings about her deranged behavior.

Standing there like a statue would lead him to be there all day, so Gwen decided to speak up.

“Um… Lady Isabel.”

“Ha… you bastard…”

Bang!

In an instant, a large Ice Spear sliced through Gwen’s cheek.

“Hey… Are you going to leave or what? Who do you think you are, interrupting my happy time?”

With an intimidating killing intent pressing down on him, Gwen was sweating profusely, recalling the man’s voice in his head.

“Gwen, you’re utterly useless. Bring Isabel right now. If you can’t even handle such a simple task, I’ll really kill you, understood?”

‘If I run away now, I’ll actually die!’

“I-I’m Gwen, here on Ned’s orders! We’ve been ordered to summon all the executives, including Lady Isabel!”

Desperate to survive, Gwen managed to say those words, and internally breathed a sigh of relief as the intense killing intent eased.

“…Ned called for me?”

“Y-Yes!”

Upon hearing that, Isabel pondered for a moment before breaking into a smile.

“Good, finally, if he’s calling for me then it can’t be helped. Ah… What kind of gift should I prepare… Oh, I should turn this child into a piece of art and decorate my room with her!”

Although Gwen wanted to argue that Ned wouldn’t appreciate such a bizarre trophy, he remained silent, knowing he would be killed if he voiced that opinion.

“W-Well then, I’ve delivered the message, so I’ll take my leave…”

Just as Gwen tried to exit the room, someone barged in through the door in a panic.

“Lady Isabel! We have a serious problem!”

“What? Why are you so noisy today?”

The man, looking like a low-level organization member, shouted urgently.

“We have an intruder! A single woman!”

“An Academy student? Are you kidding me? You couldn’t handle one person, and you’re running to me?”

Despite the overwhelming killing intent from Isabel, the member trembled but managed to respond.

“That one seems to be the Empire’s Sword.”

At those words, Isabel’s expression twisted in anger.

“…That leech of a girl is causing a ruckus again…”

‘If it’s the Empire’s Sword, that means Amelia Aegis, the war hero?’

Of all the times to show up, she had to do it while I was here.

Regret washed over as she hurriedly turned towards the exit…

Crack!

“Ugh!”

As the door smashed open, the door flew off its hinges along with Gwen.

“Hmm? Wasn’t there something here…?”

“What does that matter? They’re all just trash anyway.”

“…Who are you?”

The ones who burst in through the destroyed door were a purple-haired girl and a beastkin whose long hair looked indistinguishable from fur.

Snapping back to reality, Gwen gazed at the purple-haired girl in shock.

‘That girl is…!’

“Hmm? What’s that…”

The girl locked eyes with Gwen and seemed to enter deep thought, resting her chin on her hand.

“Surely… I’ve seen her somewhere before…”

*

Inside the mansion, Anubis, the teacher, and I discovered several organization members engaged in a gambling game in the central hall.

The teacher quickly scanned the room and said,

“About fifty of them.”

“Processing them will take some time.”

“I’ll take charge.”

As Anubis stepped forward, the teacher placed a hand on his shoulder.

“No, I’ll lure them out. You two focus on rescuing the children here.”

Anubis looked bewildered at such recklessness.

“Taking on that many bad guys alone is reckless!”

“You know this is urgent. Anubis, you can find the children’s location quickly since you have a good nose.”

As the teacher said this, they drew their sword.

“And you two can handle that girl if you happen to encounter her, so Stella, cast an invisibility spell on Anubis.”

“Understood.”

“…Got it. Then please be careful not to get hurt.”

At that, the teacher smiled and said,

“What do you think I am? Even if there are hundreds of those guys, it’s trivial. I’ll take care of them quickly and follow you, so you guys just focus on saving the kids.”

As soon as those words left her mouth, she dove into the enemies, moving through them in an instant.

“? What the hell! She…”

“Shut up.”

In a blink, an assailant’s head rolled away.

“An intruder!”

“C-Could it be that woman?”

“She’s the Empire’s Sword! Quickly, let Lady Isabel know…”

“Shut up! Your breath stinks; just stop talking!”

With a single swing, the heads and necks of the assailants were severed without mercy.

It was an entirely different and ruthless demeanor from her usual friendly expression.

“Now’s our chance; let’s push forward.”

“Got it.”

Ignoring the swarming organization members in the central hall, we pressed on and stumbled upon a shocking scene.

“…Damn it.”

“Oh my God… how could they do this…?”

Lined along the hallway were the bodies of little girls, displayed like decorations.

“These filthy scum…”

Just the sight of it made me feel sick.

Seeing this, Anubis leaped into the hallway with a serious expression.

“Anubis, calm down!”

“Amy is in danger! There’s no time to waste!”

I understood his feelings, but if he got worked up, the mansion would blow up.

Yet saving the children that might still be alive definitely took priority right now.

“It’ll be okay; calm down and don’t get worked up.”

“…Alright, I understand.”

As we ran, we found a large room with a door ajar.

“I can smell Amy in here.”

“Great, let’s sneak in quietly.”

Bang!

Anubis didn’t hesitate to smash the door open.

“…Fine, let’s just kill them all.”

As expected, he’s impossible to control. Whatever, I’m mad at these guys anyway, so I’ll just smash everything.

“Hmm? Wasn’t there something here…?”

“What does that matter? They’re all just trash anyway.”

Upon breaking through the door, what came into view were a girl lying on what looked like an operating table, a woman drenched in blood, and a lackey.

“Ugh.”

As I turned towards the sound, someone was pinned under the door.

“Hmm, what’s that?”

The man who locked eyes with me froze in horror.

“Surely… I’ve seen her somewhere before…”

Who was it again?

 

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