Fools (1)
Gilbert’s Point of View
Alicia suddenly threw her kukri sword. She must have been angry at the rude words. Alicia lives for loyalty. She would never allow insults to Father and the family. Especially not scolding. They don’t understand the class system. Around us, citizens were lying on the ground, restrained by Church knights.
The moment the kukri hit the top of the Church knight, a girl appeared in front of the man and deflected the kukri with a short sword.
She looked like a typical otherworlder with black eyes and black hair… troublesome, there are probably two others.
The one who deflected it was still a young girl. She was wearing ragged clothes and her eyes were hollow, and it was clear just by looking at her how harsh her life had been forced upon her. The collar around her neck was pitiful.
“As expected of Arland, known for its countryside, are you keeping beasts?”
The man who seemed to be the captain laughed through his nose. I don’t know why they came so quickly, but since he brought otherworlders with him, it must be their power. This is bad, I don’t know what kind of power otherworlders have.
(Alicia, if it comes to it, grab Alice and run away. Those three otherworlders are dangerous.)
(There’s no way I can leave you behind and run away, Your Highness. I’ll be killed by Her Highness.)
(Your master is Alice. Consider her safety first.)
I immediately gave instructions to Alicia. Alicia reluctantly used Invisibility to disappear…
“Where is she?”
“… She’s right there.”
“Magic Killing, activation.”
Suddenly Alicia’s Invisibility was undone.
“This is a magic killing technique!!”
This is bad. If magic doesn’t work, it will be difficult to escape. There are about 100 people… if it was just me, I could easily escape, but I can’t abandon Alice and if I abandon Alicia, Alice will attack the Empire alone next time.
“… Slow.”
“Eh? Kkyah!”
Suddenly Alicia collapsed. Behind Alicia stood another girl.
Perception magic, magic killing, and that must be teleportation. Even a top-notch assassin couldn’t take Alicia from behind. I was also slow to react because she appeared all of sudden.
Alicia lost consciousness with one blow and collapsed, and Alice on her back also fell to the ground. There was no sign of her waking up even in this situation. The fact that she didn’t crush Alice when she fell was due to Alicia’s loyalty. She collapsed in such a way as not to hurt Alice even with her falling consciousness. I immediately attacked the teleporting girl, but she teleported away.
“That sword is dangerous. If it comes to a sword fight, even Sir Knight Captain’s sword will be cut.”
“Then it is a sword suitable for me. Child, hand it over to me.”
Hand this over? This is my treasure that I promised my sister to cherish. I polish it every day and sharpen it properly. Are you trying to take away even this precious treasure?
“Mhm, I see. So you were not a Holy Knight but a thief.”
“It is too much for a child like you. I am more suitable to be the owner of this treasure. You should be pleased. After all, I am offering you the sword that rests on my hip.”
Words are not necessary. I filled my whole body with fighting spirit. I can’t push with power like my Father, but thanks to the magic power I received from my sister, which surpasses my Father, I have become much stronger than before. There is still more than enough magic power left in the bracelet.
“Citizens over there, it would be good to take advantage of the opportunity and run away. Your lives have just been saved. If you die here, Alice will be sad, right?”
“……”
The citizens grit their teeth. It’s impossible to help them. With their strength, they have no choice but to run away. They are just a hindrance here.
And then the battle began. We had fifty guards sent from Ostland and the enemy had over one hundred, and they seemed to be elite. And the otherworlders were terrifyingly strong.
Gradually our numbers decreased. I was unscathed and let as many citizens escape as possible. They weren’t even holding them hostage. We belong to Arland, so they couldn’t even be hostages. Even if they took them hostage, I would abandon them. They probably understand that and let them go on purpose.
“Troublesome.”
When I tried to cut the Captain with a horizontal cut, an otherworlder came out from the side and blocked the sword with hers. She was the only one I couldn’t cut because of her magic killing. But while the physical abilities of otherworlders were amazing, their skills were lacking. The otherworlder who was in charge of detection was already unconscious. But I can’t move either. I can’t let Alice behind me be taken away.
This was a stalemate… no, it was disadvantageous for me. I haven’t been injured yet, but my stamina was close to its limit. I haven’t recovered enough in two days.
And then I was caught off guard. I dodged the vertical cut of the magic killing and instead of blocking the Captain’s sword, as I slashed back, I was cut from behind. My armor was ignored, and I ended up getting cut because the tip of the sword was teleported inside, behind my armor.
“Guh!! This much…”
“As expected of the son of the barbarian king. But your swordsmanship has become dull.”
From then on, I continued to get injured increasingly. And finally, my strength ran out and my knees hit the ground. To stand up again, I stabbed my sword into the ground, but was kicked in the stomach by the teleporter and rolled on the ground.
“At last, we have obtained the Holy Maiden. The Church will take credit for this achievement this time. Don’t worry, we’ve already made arrangements for her. The Church sent a Holy Maiden to Ostland during this Stampede incident. We thought it would be destroyed, but you caused us extra trouble. Originally, the Royal Capital would have fallen and then we would have spread God’s teachings here afterwards. Well, if we can get our hands on the Holy Maiden, it’s a cheap price to pay.”
Are you trampling on Alice’s life-saving efforts?! Do you know how much she has sacrificed herself to help Ostland?!
“You bastard! How rotten are you!?”
“Say whatever you want. Everything is according to God’s will.”
The Captain approached Alice while speaking ecstatically about God’s greatness with a rapturous face and grabbed her by the scruff of her neck as if handling an object… and lifted her up. He was even grabbing her clothes, but I won’t allow it!! … Come to think of it, when Alice sleeps………………………… isn’t this dangerous?
Alice, who was lifted up, was emitting a pitch-black aura.