Chapter 43

Emergency
"Is something wrong—?"

"Stop the carriage!"

Just as Mr. Brough noticed something and called out, Lord Doyle suddenly shouted. Startled, the coachman immediately pulled the reins and brought the carriage to a halt.

The next moment, Lord Doyle leapt out of the carriage.

"Lord Doyle!?"

Both Mr. Brough and I rushed after him.

And then, I saw the reason why he had stopped the carriage.

A girl was running toward us. Judging by her attire, she was likely a village girl, though not from Curtis Village. Her frightened expression made it clear—she was being chased.

And my guess was correct.

Behind her, three men wielding weapons were in pursuit.

Although we were still relatively close to Glacera, the security here was likely worse compared to Abbott’s territory. Even though the Eigenberg Company had been dismantled and thrown into prison, other criminals still lurked in the shadows.

That said… three grown men, armed, chasing down a girl about the same age as Lord Doyle?

"There’s no way I can just ignore this."

The girl tripped as she reached Lord Doyle, practically collapsing into his chest.

The three men, seizing the opportunity, lunged toward her—

But before they could reach her, I used the power of the Holy Sword to send them flying.

"Are you hurt, Lord Doyle?"

"I-I'm fine."

After confirming that both he and the girl were safe, I turned my attention back to the three men, who were already picking themselves up from the ground.

Meanwhile, Mr. Brough escorted Lord Doyle and the girl back toward the carriage for safety.

"You've got guts interfering with us, knight."

"But do you really think you can handle all three of us alone?"

"If you don’t want to get hurt, hand over that girl!"

They were surprisingly confident, probably because they thought I was alone and they had the advantage in size. Unlike the members of the Eigenberg Company, who immediately recognized the Holy Sword and panicked, these three showed no such reaction. They likely had no knowledge of what they were up against.

Or maybe… they had already forgotten how I sent them flying just moments ago?

More importantly—why are they so fixated on that girl?

If she were just some random target, they should’ve backed off the moment a knight intervened.

"UOOOOHHHH!"

With a war cry, all three charged at me again.

… The exact same attack pattern as before. No creativity at all.

"Hah!"

I dodged their attacks and delivered precise counterstrikes—one to the forehead, another to the ribs, and the last to the solar plexus.

All three collapsed, groaning in agony before finally passing out.

I quickly grabbed some rope from the carriage, tied them up, and secured them at the back. It would delay our return slightly, but it was best to hand them over to the knights in Glacera to prevent further crimes.

Now, the real question—who is that girl?

I turned toward Lord Doyle and the girl, intending to ask—

But then—

"!? Lord Doyle!?"

I was met with the sight of Lord Doyle, his face twisted in pain as he clutched his ankle.