Operation: Elf Liberation

The red-light district was located near Diento's east gate. Its narrow roads were lined

with all manners of shady establishments. Drunk men stumbled down the alleys on

uneasy legs, cheerfully humming as they went.

However, it seemed like it was already past closing time for most of the

establishments. Light spilled from no more than a few windows. Lit only by the

sporadic street lamp, the alleys were practically blanketed in darkness. Even the

bright moonlight couldn't pierce the gloom of the densely packed buildings, making it

difficult to distinguish between fellow pedestrians and shadows.

Danka, the elf soldier, led the way through the dimly lit alleys. His heavy footfalls

echoed loudly on the cobblestone road in the silent night.

After walking a ways, Danka suddenly stopped. Ariane stopped right behind him.

Danka peered around a corner then turned back to Ariane, motioning ahead with his

chin. Ariane looked in the direction he indicated—a building. Apparently, this was our

destination.

Peeking out from our cover, I spied a three-story stone building. It stood on a relatively

wide road—or at least, wide for the east district. The buildings here were built so close

together that there was hardly any space separating them. The front entrance to the

building sported a steel gate, watched over by two men armed with staffs. Beyond the

gate was a yard, illuminated by four small lamps. These were held by even more men,

sitting around and chatting, their indistinct conversation occasionally broken up by

raucous laughter.

Even if we were able to dispose of the two guards out front, the gate would leave us

completely exposed to those in the garden, making it difficult to launch any sort of

surprise attack. The dense steel would easily put a stop to any frontal assault. It'd be

nearly impossible to do this all in one go.

Danka's eyes searched Ariane's for a plan. She passed the same searching look on to

me. I could see the corners of her lips curve ever so slightly upward underneath her

hood.

Danka realized what she was thinking and shot me an angry glance.

"Do you really want to send this clanking hulk in after we've snuck here under the

cover of darkness? The noise'll give us away!"

Even though my armor made far less noise than its cheaper, creaking counterparts, it

wasn't exactly silent. It wasn't the best choice for a stealth mission, but I didn't have

any other choice; I was just a skeleton underneath.

Before I had a chance to say anything, Ariane responded, "The whole point of us being

here is to help our comrades. Whether they figure it out sooner or later, it's all the

same in the end."

She was right. If we left any of the slave traders alive after saving the elves, someone

was liable to get hurt. The best option would probably be to kill them all.

"Arc, do you think you can teleport up there?"

Ariane pointed toward a small window on the building's roof, completely dark inside.

It had a small, triangular outcropping above it and looked like it could be a window

into the attic.

"Easily."

"Great! We'll move a little farther back into the alley, then you can teleport. I don't want

the glowing magic circle to alert the enemy."

"That only happens with Transport Gate. I'll be using Dimensional Step to teleport this

time. It works better for short distances."

Ariane raised her eyebrows. "You have special teleportation magic for short distances?

Just who are you really?"

"Let's go to the roof. Hang on to my shoulder."

Anything touching me would be taken along with me during Dimensional Step, while

anything not in direct contact would be left behind. Since Ponta was always riding atop

my head, I never had any problems bringing the fox.

After checking that Ariane and Danka had each grabbed a shoulder, I focused on the

roof.

"Dimensional Step!"

The scenery around us changed instantaneously. We were now looking out over the

moonlit roofs of the surrounding buildings. Gone were the cobblestone streets

beneath our feet, replaced with tiles. We had to lean back to maintain our balance on

the slanted roof.

Teleporting onto a rooftop was quite stressful. I was worried it would give way

beneath us at any moment.

Danka took a knee next to me and surveyed his surroundings. "That was amazing…"

There were few other three-story buildings in the area, which gave us an unobstructed

view of the surrounding town. Off to the southwest, I could see the inky outline of the

marquis's castle sitting atop a hill, looking rather imposing against the backdrop of

the starlit sky.

"I'll go first," Ariane whispered.

She leaned over the outcropping and peered into the small window. Only the slatted,

wooden shutters kept out the elements. Glass was still a highly prized material in this

world and apparently wasn't worth wasting on roof windows.

"It's clear. There's no one inside."

Ariane opened the window all the way and slipped inside, though she had to wiggle a

bit to get her ample chest through the small opening.

The window looked much smaller up close than it had from the street. Ariane and

Danka were slender, but even they could barely fit through. There was absolutely no

way someone outfitted in bulky armor could ever make it inside.

After Ariane was through, Danka slipped in after her. Now that my turn was up, I

looked through the window, called up Dimensional Step, and teleported inside.

Ariane scowled. "You coulda just done that first, you know!"

I wondered if she was embarrassed about all the wiggling she'd had to do to get inside.

Even in the dark, I could see her cheeks were flushed a light crimson. But I didn't see

any reason for her to be embarrassed.

Danka ignored her objections, speaking in a low, easy-going voice as he surveyed the

room. "It looks like this is just storage."

Boxes were scattered about the room, though the space seemed largely unused. There

was a musty smell to the air, as if the room was rarely used.

Danka moved slowly, trying not to make any noise on the wooden floorboards. Once

he reached the thin stairwell at the far side of the room, he looked down and quickly

brought a finger to his lips.

Ariane locked eyes with Danka and nodded. Danka slowly made his way downstairs.

We could hear him moving about in the room below, before he popped his head up

from the stairwell and gave us the "go" sign.

Ariane and I followed him down the steps.

The room below the attic was occupied by two sets of bunk beds. Men with blood

gushing from their throats lay in each of the beds, filling the air with the smell of warm,

rusty iron. Danka stood at the center of the carnage, busying himself with putting

blankets back over the men to make it look like they were sleeping. Ariane made her

way to the door at the center of the wall and peered outside before beckoning us over.

Once Danka's work was done, he and I made our way over to Ariane. She detailed her

plan with hand gestures: Danka would go right, Ariane would go left, and I'd move

through the center. Once we'd all nodded in agreement, she opened the door.

The door opened into a hallway with an open atrium at the end of it. Each side of the

atrium was lined with three doors, with an additional door located at the far side of

the room, presumably leading to the floor below.

The building was dimly lit by lamps lining the halls. This would let us see down to the

floor below, but it also meant that we could be seen. Checking the rooms on either side

would prove dangerous.

Ariane and Danka crouched down, trying not to make any noise as they each

approached a door and put an ear to them. A moment later, they silently opened the

doors and slipped inside, leaving me alone in the hallway.

There was no way I could cross this floor without making any noise, so I used

Dimensional Step to teleport to the door at the other end of the room. I worried for a

moment that my legs would become useless if I travelled everywhere using magic, but

I put that aside for the time being.

Unlike the other doors in the room, the one in front of me one was of much heavier

construction and was adorned with carvings and a gold-colored knob. I could sense a

person on the other side of the door, moving around cautiously. But it didn't seem like

they were about to sound the alarm.

Figuring I couldn't just wait around forever, I put my hand on the doorknob and slowly

turned it. Locked. I leaned forward and peeked through the keyhole. The last time I'd

looked through one of these was probably in elementary school, when I'd tried to

break into the old storeroom.

Through the keyhole, I focused on a specific location and summoned my Dimensional

Step.

I reappeared in a narrow, brightly lit room, still in the same crouching position. The

walls were lined with ornate furnishings. A low-backed leather sofa sat in the center

of the room, an amber-colored desk near the far wall. A well-dressed, heavyset man

sat behind the desk, motionless. As I glanced around the room, the bloodstained

bodies of three armed men stood out in the flickering lamplight. They all appeared to

be dead.

A shadow suddenly lunged toward my face.

"Waugh?!"

My right fist connected with the shadow, making a metallic clang as a weapon similar

to a kunai glanced off my gauntlet. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw another shadow

dash toward me, trying to stay in my blind spot.

This shadow was a young girl, dressed from head to toe in black with a red scarf

trailing behind her, almost like a tail. She wore greaves on her legs, gauntlets on her

arms, and a band around her head with a metal plate that had been burnt black. Her

mouth was covered with a mask, and she wielded two short swords.

The black-clad girl came in low from the floor, lunging to stab at the gaps in my armor.

I deflected her blades with my gauntlet, and she flipped backward through the air,

putting space between us.

"How did you get in here? The door was locked." The girl's mask slightly muffled her

voice.

Instead of answering her question, I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind.

"You're a ninja…"

The black-clad figure raised an eyebrow in response. Just then, I noticed a pair of catlike ears sticking out of the top of her head, complimenting her beautiful—yet cold—

azure eyes. One of the ears twitched. Upon closer inspection, I could see that the belt

she wore around her waist was twitching occasionally as well. It wasn't a belt at all,

but a tail.

The ears and tail appeared to be real, and not mere decorations. Some sort of animal

ninja girl was standing right in front of me.

While I came to terms with the unexplainable feeling welling up inside of me, the ninja

girl took notice of the green fox sitting atop my head, her eyes narrowing. The next

moment, her hand disappeared inside her cloak and she threw something into the air.

I was too lost in my own thoughts to respond in time; Ponta, however, reacted

instantly.

The fox dove off my head and caught the red ball midair before doing a single flip and

landing on the ground. It started chewing on the ball—apparently some form of fruit,

slightly smaller than a plum. Ponta gnawed noisily as the girl leaned down to pet it,

her eyes smiling.

I'd heard spirit creatures didn't warm up to people easily, and yet, three seconds after

meeting her, Ponta was comfortable with this newcomer.

Wait a minute, hadn't this girl been throwing knives at me mere moments ago? I asked

her about this.

"I apologize for that. You're not the one I'm looking for. What are you doing here?"

The ninja girl looked up at me, her head tilted inquisitively to the side. I was at a loss

for words. Even if we were no longer enemies, I still wasn't eager to tell a stranger why

I'd snuck in.

Before I could come up with an answer as to what I was doing there, the ninja girl took

a guess.

"You're here to save the elves, right? In that case, they're locked in a dungeon, in the

basement."

She caught me completely off guard with her response. There was nothing about my

armor-clad appearance to suggest whether I was a human or an elf. And Ariane and

Danka were still searching the other rooms, so I had no idea how she'd been able to

figure out why I was here.

I glanced at the bodies of the former guards lying at her feet.

Had she done this? If so, her delicate figure belied her fighting prowess. Had she found

out about the elves from them?

Seeing my reaction seemed to bolster the girl's confidence in her guess.

Now that things had settled down slightly, I decided to ask her a question of my own.

"Did you also sneak in here to set the elves free?"

She shook her head. "I was looking for something, but apparently it isn't here. I wasn't

sure what to do about the elves, but it sounds like I can leave that to you."

The girl picked up a large, heavy-looking leather bag off the desk and strapped it to

her back, tying it tight with a rope. She hesitated, as if remembering something, and

moved behind the desk. A moment later, she handed me a scroll made from sheepskin.

"Here you are." She spoke in a flat voice, her face unreadable.

"What is this?" I looked back at the girl as I took the scroll.

"There are six more of these in the building. I expect you'll be needing them."

The girl walked over to the open window at the side of the room and put her foot up

on the sill. She turned back to me to offer her parting words.

"The rest is up to you, but I feel our paths will cross again, when the time comes… Oh,

one more thing. There are two elves being held in the marquis's castle."

As soon as she was done speaking, she grabbed the roof above her and effortlessly

swung out of the room, not encumbered in the slightest by the heavy, rattling bag on

her back. She disappeared into the dark night, easily fading away into the silhouettes

of the buildings.

After she was gone, I peered around the desk she'd been hiding behind. In its shadow,

I found a small stone door, wide open. A sturdy lock lay discarded on the floor beside

the door. It had apparently failed in its task to keep the door shut.

I looked inside and found a small storage space, its shelves lined with all manner of

rings and valuables… and six more of the sheepskin scrolls. It was some type of vault.

I'd wager the heavy bag the girl carried on her back was full of gold from the vault.

Judging by her demeanor, however, I had a hard time believing she was just here for

money. Not that I'd hold stealing money from such evil people against her. I had no

idea what she'd been looking for, but at least it didn't seem to affect our plan at all.

Her parting words still echoed in my mind. She'd mentioned that the marquis held

two elf slaves, suggesting he condoned the hunting of elves.

I had to tell Ariane.

After this rescue was accomplished, our next mission would be to infiltrate the

marquis's castle. I should probably charge extra for that.

As I mulled this over, I reached into the vault and pulled out a scroll. It was a purchase

contract, and for no small sum; the price was listed at over 10,000 sok. Since the only

products within this house were elves, that meant they were being sold for over

10,000 gold coins apiece.

Including the scroll the ninja girl had given me, that made seven contracts in total. I

needed to figure out if these were contracts for the elves currently imprisoned here or

for those who'd already been sold off. The contracts listed the names of the buyers, so,

once I figured out who they were, I'd be able to rescue the elves.

From what I could tell, elven men sold for higher rates, which went against my

expectations. I wondered if there was any special reason for women being in lower

demand.

I shoved all seven contracts from the vault into my bag.

Ponta sidled up next to me and let out a "kyii," a wide grin on its face.

"Oh, Ponta… Do you just trust anyone who'll give you treats?"

Even I could hear the tinge of jealousy in my voice. Ponta looked back at me curiously,

so I picked it up and put it on my head.

With nothing left to do in the room, I made my way back to the door, unlocked it, and

stepped out into the hallway where Danka and Ariane were finishing their respective

searches.

"There were just a few thugs in here. Ariane?"

"I didn't find anything."

It looked like they'd both struck out on the side rooms.

Danka turned his green eyes toward me, as if to ask what I had found.

"I gained some interesting information. Apparently, the captured elves are being held

in a dungeon beneath the house. I also found these."

I pulled one of the scrolls I'd taken from the vault out of my bag and handed it to

Ariane. She looked it over suspiciously before undoing the string and unrolling the

parchment, letting her eyes run across the contents. Her brow furrowed, and deep

wrinkles formed on her forehead.

"It's…"

"An elf purchase contract. I found seven of them. I think they can lead us to the buyers.

I also found out something else of note. I learned there are two elves being held in the

marquis's castle."

"Where did you learn that?"

Ariane glanced up at me before turning her attention to the room I'd just left. The room

was rapidly growing cold, and the large, dead man still sat at the desk, as if he were a

mere decoration.

She probably figured I'd gotten my information from him. Hopefully that'd be enough

for her for now. We needed to focus our efforts on saving the elves.

Personally, I felt I could trust the young ninja girl, and it wasn't just because of her

adorable little cat ears. I may not have had solid proof, but I felt like it was extremely

unlikely I'd happen across a person like that in a slave trader's hideout who wanted to

feed me misinformation.

"I guess we'll have to head to the marquis's castle after we finish up here. Arc, will you

come along with me? I'll gladly pay you an additional fee. I normally wouldn't even

think of sneaking into a castle, but with you there…" Ariane stared straight at me with

her golden eyes.

There was something indescribably cheering about having a beautiful woman rely on

you. I found myself smiling.

"I've already come this far. I may as well see it through."

"Thank you, Arc. I'm sorry to keep asking for favors, but there's something quite

different about you, you know."

I nodded, and Ariane bowed her head in return, a smile forming on her lips.

"The very idea that the marquis himself would be involved…" Danka spat, an angry

look burning in his eyes. "We'll have to tell the others as soon as we get back."

Judging by the high purchase prices, the people buying elves must have all been

nobility, or well-off merchants. We also knew there were at least nine elves currently

being held captive.

"We should head to the basement, where our friends are being held," Ariane piped up.

"We can deal with the marquis's castle later."

Danka agreed, and the two left the room. I teleported after them to avoid making any

noise. If there had been anyone watching us, it probably would have looked as if a

large, ghostly suit of armor followed the pair.

We took the stairs from the third floor to the second, then crossed the atrium and

descended to the first floor. After passing through a hallway, we found ourselves in

front of a massive staircase on the first-floor hall. There were several tables in the

room, with chairs scattered about, giving the impression of a bar. Several roughlooking men stood about, but they hadn't noticed us yet.

Danka gestured with his hand, indicating we should retreat, so we went back up to the

third floor.

"There's no way we can make it down to the basement without being noticed. I'll take

the second floor. Ariane, I'll leave the first floor to you."

Ariane replied eagerly to Danka's order. "Understood."

Danka turned his attention to me but said nothing. I guessed Ponta and I would just

have to respond to whatever happened.

Ariane drew her sword and led the way down to the first floor, where she peeked

around the corner to take stock of the situation. After taking a steadying breath, she

dove into the room.

The gathered men stood awestruck for a moment as they watched Ariane fly down the

stairs at them, blade held ready.

"Fire, I implore you. Light this sword ablaze!"

Ariane murmured a spell, and moments later, fire danced across the blade. Blood

spewed from the first man she slashed as his body burst into flames.

"Gyaaaaaaugh!!!"

The man's death cry echoed throughout the large hall, sending men running out from

the rooms on the second floor to see what was unfolding below.

The burning corpse dropped to the floor, landing between the tables and chairs,

sending sparks toward the furniture. Men rushed over to put out their comrade, but

Ariane slew them all, creating more and more human torches as she went.

Danka stepped from a second-floor room and began cutting men down where they

stood, before they even had a chance to join the fight on the first floor. His

swordsmanship was nothing short of amazing. The men never stood a chance.

I'd heard elves were renowned for their magical abilities, but watching the way these

two wielded their swords gave me a newfound appreciation for their martial prowess.

I saw several men leave a second-floor room to surround Danka. After forming my

hand into a fist, I summoned up my Rock Shot and fired at them. The massive stones

that leaped from my fist not only burst through the men, but also the wall behind them.

I realized it would only be a matter of time until the men outside heard the noise and

joined the fray.

I used Dimensional Step to reach the entrance on the first floor and locked the massive

door to keep anyone from getting in… or out.

"Get 'im!!!"

A man let out a scream from behind me and came running in to strike. I spun around

and punched him with my fist, shattering his skull and sending his body flying through

a table and chairs before embedding itself in the wall.

Since I was at level 255, fighting these men was nothing short of overkill.

One of the men Ariane had set ablaze stumbled into the kitchen. Moments later, large

flames erupted from the doorway. There must have been some sort of oil or gas inside.

Even if the house itself was made of stone, there was still plenty inside that could catch

fire. Flames roared as the blaze crawled up the wooden pillars and spread throughout

the building.

"Kyiiiiii…"

Ponta crawled off my head and onto my shoulder, wrapping itself around my neck and

burying its head near my ear. As flames erupted everywhere, I felt like I was wearing

a fur scarf.

Danka came downstairs, apparently finished cleaning up the men on the second floor.

Ariane extinguished her flaming sword and sheathed it so she could search the

surrounding area.

I could hear the faint sounds of someone frantically banging on the massive door at

the entrance, yelling something indistinct. The door was much thicker than I'd

guessed. With the lock firmly in place, they wouldn't be getting in anytime soon.

"I found the stairs to the basement!"

I moved toward Danka's voice, flames already spreading throughout the first floor and

all around me. Behind the massive staircase was a wooden door, behind which a

staircase descended into the darkness.

The room had grown rather hot, so Ariane pulled off her hood. I caught a glimpse of

the scowl on her face before she turned away to lead us down the stone steps. Danka

followed, and I pulled up the rear.

"Just who do you—gyauuuggh!!!"

Below, I heard a man yell out, followed by a scream of agony and the clang of clashing

swords.

"Damn, how'd they get down here?! Just what're those lazy sacks of—uruugh!!!"

Something fell to the ground with a thud. By the time I reached the bottom of the stairs,

it was all over.

The basement was much more spacious than I'd imagined, the walls lined with cells,

each with their own iron-barred door. The whole place smelled like dirt and rotting

food. Three dead men lay at my feet, their blood pooling together. Ariane ripped a key

ring off one of the bloody men's belts and made for the cells.

"My name is Ariane Glenys Maple. I've come to save you!"

I could hear several people moving around behind the cell doors.

"It can't be! A soldier from Maple has come to rescue us?!"

A young woman, who looked no older than seventeen, sprang up behind one of the

doors, her expression a mixture of shock and excitement. A moment later, several

younger girls appeared next to her. All of them wore the same black metal collars that

I'd seen on the children in the forest.

Ariane flipped through the keys, trying each one in the lock until she found one that

fit. The lock opened with a loud clink, which the girls took as their cue to leave the cell.

While they thanked Ariane and Danka, I noticed that the fire had spread to the door at

the top of the basement stairs. We didn't have much time. I'd have to deal with the

mana-eater collars later.

"Miss Ariane, the fire has already consumed the first floor. We'd best get going."

The young girls turned at the sound of my voice, a few letting out squeaks of fear as

they ducked behind Ariane.

Evidently, helmeted men covered in black cloaks weren't popular among young girls.

"It's fine, I hired him to help save you. Is this everyone?"

The girls all nodded, eliciting a relieved smile from Ariane.

"That's it for us here, Arc. Let's get going."

"All right then. We'll teleport outside the town limits."

I stepped close to Ariane and the four young girls, making sure Danka was also in the

area of effect before summoning my spell.

"Transport Gate!"

A large magic pillar appeared at our feet, its blue glow filling the room and

overpowering the dim illumination of the lamps. The circle of young girls tightened

around Ariane, their faces tense as they watched the magic unfold. They shuddered as

we were plunged into darkness. A split second later, we found ourselves in the middle

of a grassy plain.

The oppressive atmosphere of the dark, cold basement was instantly replaced by a

gentle evening breeze blowing across us, the burbling sounds of the river echoing in

the distance. The stone bridge, illuminated by the moon, appeared as if it were floating

above the dark river. On the far side of the Lydel, I could see the man-made structures

of the town and the walls surrounding it.

For a moment, the young girls around Ariane didn't seem to realize what had

happened, though their faces slowly took on expressions of surprise as they looked

about. Danka, too, let out a gasp when he saw where we were.

The loud clang of the town's bell suddenly joined the sounds of rustling grass and

burbling water, probably to notify the townsfolk of the blaze.

Off in the distance, within the town walls, I could see faint red flames licking into the

sky, a pillar of smoke spreading above. All eyes were undoubtedly on that one spot.

***

A man stood in a room deep within his fortress at the center of the town of Diento.

Despite the fortress's stark outward appearance, the rooms within were all

elaborately decorated and expensively furnished. The sleeping quarters were

outfitted with intricately carved poster beds covered with soft, beautifully

embroidered duvets.

In this particular room, a woman lay atop the large bed, her hands held fast by wooden

bracelets, her body by metal chains. The single layer of silk the woman wore barely

covered her, leaving her pale white body and faintly pink breasts exposed. Her crossed

legs blocked her nether regions from view, but the wooden bracelets prevented her

from covering her upper body.

The woman's green-tinged, blonde hair, punctuated by large, pointed ears, was

splayed out on the duvet below her, looking almost like a palm tree frond. Her eyes

blazed with contempt for the person standing over her.

"You elves always come up short with your bosoms. But your bodies… I just can't get

enough of them."

The older, pudgy man standing at the foot of the bed grinned broadly. It was Marquis

Tryton du Diento, the ruler of the town and surrounding area.

"If you're gonna do it, just get it over with already, you stupid prick!"

The man fixed her with an intimidating glare as she hurled insults at him. However,

his smile only grew wider, as if he enjoyed her response.

"Oh, Sena, you always keep me on my toes with your spunky attitude. Hehehe!"

Two chambermaids stood expressionless off to the side of the room, ignoring the elven

woman's pleading gaze.

Tears welled up in the corners of Sena's eyes. Tryton looked quite pleased with himself

over the elven woman's response. He reached down to grab her snow-white ankles,

preparing to lay his massive frame on top of her. Sena's face expressed both shame

and disgust.

A lone man ran down the long corridor toward the marquis's chambers. The castle

was eerily quiet, but the sound of the warning bells outside could be heard

reverberating through the hall's windows.

The massive double doors leading to the chambers were made of wood so thick it was

nearly impossible to hear what was going on beyond them. Intricate gold inlay gave

the doors a further air of extravagance. A guard stood on either side of the door, their

eyes lighting up as the disheveled man approached.

The man was Celsika Dourman, the envoy to Diento. He banged aggressively on the

massive doors, almost as if he were out of his mind, though neither guard made any

attempt to stop him.

"Master Tryton, it's me, Celsika. I have urgent news for you! Please, open the door at

once!"

The pale, nervous-looking man wasn't usually one to be easily shaken, but this evening

his face was flushed in desperation, and he was sweating profusely.

"Celsika? What are you doing here at this hour…? Fine, fine, come in." It was clear from

the marquis's expression that he was upset at having his evening activities

interrupted. He ordered one of the chambermaids in the corner to open the door while

he put his gown back on.

As soon as the doors opened, Celsika muttered a greeting and stumbled into the dimly

lit room.

Tryton plopped his plump figure onto the bed and watched the frantic man enter.

"Master Tryton, I would like to see you alone…"

Tryton stroked his white beard and glanced over at the chambermaids. They quietly

bowed their heads and made their way outside.

"What's so urgent?" The indignation was evident on Tryton's face.

Celsika glanced over at the naked, bound woman on the bed before returning his gaze

to Tryton.

"There are currently four fires running rampant in the city…"

The longer Tryton listened, the more apparent his displeasure grew, his face contorting

into a scowl.

Celsika sped up his explanation.

"All of the blazing buildings were slave markets, including our own!"

"What did you say?!"

Tryton was up in an instant. "We're almost at the deadline for handing over the

product to Revlon! What happened to our goods?!"

"According to the surviving guards, some mysterious figure infiltrated the building

before the fire broke out."

"How can that be? We have guards in place to prevent such a thing! What the hell were

those idiots up to?!" The marquis was now completely enraged at what he was

hearing.

"Apparently, someone locked the front door from the inside. They could hear screams

coming from within. The building is surrounded on all sides, and there are no other

points of entry, so the only possibility is that one of our men is a traitor."

Tryton strode to the window, glaring out at the city beneath him as he combed his

fingers through his white hair. His anger had yet to subside.

"Dammit! Send the castle guards to the building and put out that fire at once! The

basement is made of stone, so it should still be intact!"

"Don't you think it would look strange if we only dispatch guards to one location? We

should send them to the other three as well…"

"Don't waste time telling me this! Just gather the guards and send them out!"

A vein bulged in Tryton's forehead as he rounded on Celsika. Sensing the oncoming

onslaught, Celsika turned and stumbled out of the room with the same desperation as

when he'd entered.

"If it's not one thing, it's the next! The men we sent out to collect the phantasms have

been decimated, and now this!"

Tryton breathed heavily, his throat parched from all the yelling. He reached for a

nearby pitcher and gulped down the water.

"I suppose I should be thankful that idiot son of mine is running late in delivering the

goods. Worst-case scenario, I can put off other domestic orders and send what we have

to Revlon…"

The Marquis du Diento rubbed his temples as he tried to figure out what to do next.

***

From my spot on the far shore of the Lydel River, I watched as smoke rose from several

fires throughout Diento.

How strange… The slave trader building we'd set on fire was in the red-light district

near the east gate, but there were also flames cropping up in other parts around the

city.

"Did you set those fires around town, Miss Ariane?"

I considered the possibility that Ariane's comrades had set the other fires to keep the

town on edge. But she shook her head in response, a look of concern on her face.

"We had nothing to do with that. Danka and I were the only ones who went into town,

so something else must have caused those. But this works out great for us! It may even

draw out the castle soldiers if they're conscripted to put out the blaze."

Ariane didn't appear to be lying. Danka and the children also looked confused as they

gazed at the growing flames.

She was right, this could turn out to be a great opportunity. If my own secret organization

was under attack, I'd send reinforcements immediately. Hopefully Marquis du Diento

would act the same way.

"You're right. Assuming Diento dispatched some of his soldiers to assist with the fire,

the castle will be low on guards. This could be the perfect opportunity for us to

infiltrate it."

Ariane twisted her lips into a beguiling smile before directing her gaze toward Danka

and the children.

"Danka, can I leave the children with you? If you head up the Lydel and into the forest,

you should only be about a day away from the nearest town."

"Good plan. We should be able to make it to the Rivulet River by dawn. You're a better

fighter than me, so I'll leave the castle to you. We'll wait for you near the forest."

"Thank you. Oh, and Arc, can you do something about the mana-eater collars before

we go?"

"Certainly."

Ariane nudged one of the elven girls forward. Doing my best not to frighten her, I

reached out with my hand and held it over her collar.

"Uncurse."

Symbols glowed in front of my hand as I summoned the spell which were quickly

sucked in by the collar. A second later, a loud "clink!" rang out as the collar shattered.

The other girls couldn't believe their eyes. One by one, I cast Uncurse on their collars,

setting them free. Once all the collars had been removed, they all thanked me together.

"You can even remove curses? There's so much I don't know about you, mysterious

stranger…" Danka spoke in a soft voice, clearly surprised.

Ariane tapped me on the shoulder and fixed her gaze on the castle at the center of

Diento. Apparently, that was her sign it was time to go.

I nodded in acknowledgement, then moved Ponta from where it rested around my

neck back to the top of my head. Ponta gave a small cry to let me know it was ready.

I used my Dimensional Step first, to teleport to the other side of the river. The sound

of the bell grew louder.

Thanks to the proximity between the south gate and the river, there were no houses

outside the wall, and no one in sight. Due to the late hour, there were also few sentries

manning the top of the outer wall.

After using Dimensional Step to teleport to the top of the wall, I quickly teleported

again to the inner wall.

Unlike its external-facing counterpart, there were no sentries atop the inner wall. I

imagined it was built purely for strategic reasons, in case the fortress came under

attack. There wasn't much use for sentries here in times of peace.

However, just to be on the safe side, I kept my body low as I peered out between the

parapets.

I spied smoke rising from various places across the town. It looked like there were

four fires in total. The odds of four separate fires breaking out at the same time seemed

rather suspect, but I didn't have time to think about that.

Ariane's gold eyes gazed out at me from under her gray cloak, urging me to hurry up.

Her light purple skin seemed to disappear in the darkness of her cloak, making it look

as if only her eyes existed within, bringing to mind the conductor from a certain anime

about an express train in space. Unlike the anime character though, a dynamite body

lurked beneath her cloak.

I could see the marquis's castle at the center of the town, towering above everything

in the area. Under the dim moonlight, it looked pretty far away. The buildings near the

base of the castle were swallowed in its massive shadow.

Ariane poked me to get my attention. It wasn't like I was just gawking. I was trying to

figure out a way to teleport close to the castle, but I couldn't find any favorable

destinations. Teleportation magic wasn't much use in the dark. I decided to focus on

the moonlit roof of the castle and was able to easily teleport there with Dimensional

Step.

Since the castle had been built atop a hill, the town below suddenly seemed all the

smaller. I had a great view of the whole area. It'd be an amazing sight to see in the

middle of the day.

Ariane, surprised to find herself up so high, lost her balance for a moment and grabbed

my arm, letting out a small shriek.

"Eek! H-hey! Don't just go teleporting onto roofs like that, okay? I need a moment to

get my bearings!"

We were standing atop the slanted roof of a tower. The angle was steep, and if you lost

your balance, you'd fall straight to the ground below. It was no wonder she was upset.

She stood close enough that I could detect a delightfully feminine fragrance wafting

off her. Despite her chest pressing so tightly against my arm, I couldn't really feel

anything on account of her leather and my steel armor.

"My apologies."

She narrowed her eyes and shot me a look. Her demeanor quickly changed, however,

when she caught sight of Ponta atop my head, tilting its head adorably to the side. I

decided I owed Ponta some raisins after all this was over, for resolving the tense

situation.

It seemed unlikely that the marquis would have planned on intruders coming through

the roof, which allowed us to look around freely without having to worry about anyone

noticing.

The castle lacked the dignified air you would commonly associate with nobility,

looking more like a foreboding fortress. In addition to the double walls, it also sported

twin moats, making a straight-forward invasion all but impossible.

Between the inner wall and the castle itself, there was a large, open expanse leading

up to the front gate. The space contained barracks and barren patches of land likely

used for training.

The castle itself had six towers along its perimeter, while the center portion contained

a building that appeared to be the residence of the marquis himself, which was

connected to another, smaller building by a hallway.

Our vantage atop the tower nearest the marquis's residence gave us a view of the

entire complex.

The castle was vast, so looking around blindly in the hopes of finding the elves would

only end in us being discovered.

The tower we stood atop served as a lookout for the fortress. Underneath, it would

likely house a storeroom full of grains for use during a siege. Far below, there were

likely dungeons, where they'd lock up prisoners and other criminals, but I had a hard

time believing the marquis would spend all that money on an elf just to lock them up.

"Miss Ariane, I hesitate to even ask this, but what are elf slaves used for after they're

caught?"

Her golden eyes glared at me from within her hood, her face clouding over in

annoyance. "Does it matter?"

"Not particularly. I just thought we would have an easier time finding them if we know

what they're used for."

After a moment of silence, Ariane spoke in a low, solemn tone. "Women are usually

used for pleasure, like playthings. I've heard the men are used to impregnate noble

women."

"According to the purchase contracts, men typically fetch much higher prices. Is that

the reason? Why would a human woman want to bear the child of an elven man?"

"When a mixed-species child is conceived, it takes on the species of its mother. Didn't

you know that?"

I nodded along with her, even though this was all new to me.

"However, the child is also born with the magic of an elf. I hear that's the reason many

noble families among the humans possess strong magical abilities. They've been

intermingling with elves for generations. Though, they're still not able to use spirit

magic."

So, that was one of the ways humans had been able to survive on this monster-infested

continent. They'd been forcefully taking the elves' power for themselves to build up

their magic. If many of the nobles possessed magical abilities, that suggested money

and strength were closely equated with power in this world. So why had the country

sworn off relations with the elves, if they could use them to increase their strength?

I had a hard time believing that people in a feudalistic world like this would do it out

of respect for human rights. It had to be some sort of plot by those in power. But I

didn't have time to untangle all of that just then. We were there to rescue the enslaved

elves.

I doubted the marquis would keep them in a dungeon if they were being forced to have

sexual relations with humans. The marquis's residence seemed like the most likely

location. Fortunately, there were few guards -currently patrolling the building. I wasn't

sure if this was because they'd been dispatched to deal with the fire, but I was thankful

either way.

"Let's head to the marquis's residence."

Ariane already had a hand on my shoulder. I teleported down from the roof of the

watch tower to the hedges near the residence.

Through one of the glass windows that lined the building, I could see a wide, empty

hallway, so I teleported us inside. We were now fully exposed.

The hallway ran along the perimeter of the residence, its walls decorated with an

eclectic selection of furnishings.

Ariane walked lightly to keep her footsteps from being heard. She approached one of

the doors lining the hallway and quietly opened it, peering inside.

She waved her hand, indicating for me to follow her into the room. Inside was a

wooden table and chairs, all polished to a shine, sitting atop a decorative wooden floor.

The walls were also covered with massive paintings. At first I thought it might be a

reception room, but a closer look suggested it would be better suited for meetings.

The room was dimly lit, making it difficult to see anything.

There was another door directly across from the one we'd just entered. Ariane crossed

the room and opened it a crack.

The residence had looked deceptively small from the top of the tower, but now that

we were inside, it felt rather spacious. I wondered if this building also had its own

dungeon in the basement.

Ariane stepped through the door and out of the meeting room. I followed a few steps

behind her.

The next room appeared to be another hallway, about half as wide as the one running

along the perimeter. Both sides of the hall were lined with doors, the spaces in

between adorned with small paintings. The hall turned to the left at the end, so I

couldn't see what lay beyond.

I teleported to the end of the hall and slowly stuck my head around the corner to get

a better look. The hall ended in a wooden door with a latticed window. In front of the

door, a guard dozed in a chair. Compared to the other doors in the room, this one

seemed strange.

I teleported next to the guard, wrapped my arm around his neck, and began choking

him. His eyes opened instantly and his limbs started flailing, but that lasted only a

moment before he lost consciousness. Once his body went limp, I put him back into

his chair so it'd look like he was still sleeping.

I found a key attached to the guard's waist with a leather strap, so I ripped it from his

body and tried it in the nearby door. The lock released with a satisfying click. I slowly

turned the knob and stepped into a small, square room. The only thing inside was a

stairwell leading down. Since we were already on the first floor, that meant these

stairs led to a basement. Taken together with the guard posted at the door, that

suggested my initial hunch was correct.

I called out to Ariane, who'd followed me to this section of the hallway and was busily

searching the other rooms.

"Miss Ariane."

Even though I'd spoken in a low voice, she quickly turned her head in my direction.

Apparently, elf ears really were that sensitive.

I gestured with my chin and she nodded, following me into the square room. After

checking the stairwell in the center of the room, Ariane led the way down.

Despite the wooden steps, Ariane was somehow able to reach the bottom without

making a single sound, almost like a ninja. There was absolutely no way I'd be able to

do that in my armor, so I teleported after her. I thought briefly about imitating a certain

fire-breathing Indian character from a popular fighting game, if it came to using any

of my flame attacks down here, but my thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of

battle up ahead.

I could hear a man groaning, followed by the thump of something slumping to the

floor. Apparently, there'd been another guard standing watch.

I found myself in a hallway illuminated by several lamps. On my right was a stone wall

with three steel--reinforced wooden doors. There were no windows in the doors, and

I had no idea what could be on the other side.

"My name is Ariane Glenys Maple. Are any of my comrades being held here?"

Ariane knocked on the first door and identified herself. A reply came back almost

instantly.

"A soldier from Maple? I can't believe my luck! Please, get me out of here!"

Evidently, Maple soldiers were known for their fighting prowess. The woman on the

other side of the door sounded slightly nervous, but her relief and excitement were

clear.

Ariane rolled the dead guard over to search his body for a key so she could let the

woman free, but she came up empty.

She shouted in annoyance, "I can't find any keys!"

An answer came from the other side of the door. "The owner of this place has them.

They put a mana-eater collar on me, so I'm not able to use any spirit magic to break

down the door."

So, only the marquis held the keys? It made a certain amount of sense. If the guards

held keys to the room, they could take advantage of the captives whenever they

pleased. But if the door could be broken with spirit magic, then we didn't need to

worry about the keys at all.

"Please, step back from the door."

I took a deep breath and gave the steel-reinforced door a solid kick.

An awful clang resonated throughout the basement as the locking mechanism

shattered. The door, covered in only a thin plate of steel, screeched as I shoved it aside,

bending under the pressure. With this much power, I could probably escape any jail

on my own, if it came down to it.

A thin, pale woman stood on the other side of the twisted door, a look of shock on her

face. She had the long ears and green-tinged, blonde hair typical to elves. Her beautiful

body was covered in nothing but a thin robe, under which I could faintly see the

outline of pink nipples. I quickly redirected my eyes to her hands, which were bound

by wooden shackles held together with nails. Elves weren't known for their brute

strength, so it was probably enough to keep her restrained.

For me, however, the wooden shackles broke easily. The enslaved woman rubbed her

newly freed wrists before bowing her head low.

"Thank you for your help. Are you also a soldier from Maple?" she spoke, in a slow,

gentle voice. Her bob-cut hair shifted gently as she tilted her head to the side, fixing

me with a curious look.

"No, I hired him to help me save you." Ariane popped her head out from behind me, a

chagrined look on her face as she explained the situation. "He may look intimidating,

but he's a good guy. You have nothing to worry about."

She asked me to remove the mana-eater collar. I nodded and summoned the Uncurse

spell. A moment later, the metal collar dropped to the ground with a clang.

The woman rubbed her neck gently. "I can't believe it! I didn't know there was anyone

out there who could lift curses without chanting!"

"Please, take this, if you'd like." I removed my black cloak and handed it to the scantily

dressed woman.

"Thank you so much! W-Wow, this is pretty big…"

After draping the cloak over herself, she looked around the room. Maybe it was my

imagination, but she seemed to be in remarkably good spirits despite having been

locked away. I couldn't tell if she was just used to living on the cusp of death, or if all

elves were like this. Either way, she came across as quite strong.

"By the way, I heard there were two elves being held here. Do you know anything about

that?"

The woman slammed her fist into her hand as if she'd just remembered something.

"That's right! They took Sena off to the marquis's room tonight!"

So, Diento had decided to have the other elf brought to him. That meant we'd need to

get close to the marquis himself to rescue this Sena. The situation had just gotten

much, much worse. If I rescued an elf from the marquis himself, I'd undoubtedly be

putting myself on the bad side of the influential people. Considering Diento was

violating the laws of the kingdom, he probably wouldn't want to spread the story

about me, but he could still make it difficult for me to move about freely.

"What if we come back for her later? We don't even know where the marquis is

located."

It wasn't an easy suggestion for me to make, but Ariane quickly shot me down.

"We can't do that! If we let this opportunity go, they'll increase security, and it'll be

even harder to get in next time."

Of course, she was right. We needed to take advantage of the situation tonight. We'd

already come this far. I just needed to steel myself for the next part of the mission.

Besides, I couldn't really leave the other elf in this place.

"The marquis? He's up in his bedroom on the top floor. I can show you!" The onceenslaved elf made a fist with her right hand.

"I see. Are you familiar with the layout of his residence?"

"Of course I am. I've been here two years after all…" She frowned, her eyes drooping

slightly.

"Two years… That's quite a long time."

"We elves have long lives, so it's different for us. But I can't say it's been short either."

Ariane stepped up to hurry us along. "We've gotta hurry. You said you could lead us to

the marquis, umm, Miss…?"

"Oh, I'm Uhna. Pleased to meet you, Ariane. Now, follow me!"

The woman introduced herself quickly, then took the lead and jogged up the stairs.

Ariane took off after her, and I followed before they could leave me behind. Given how

big this place was, I'd never be able to find them again if I lost them.

I followed the two elven women up the stairs to the first floor, out of the room with

the stairwell, into the hallway, and out through another door that led to the first floor's

main hall.

Directly in front of the building's entrance sat a massive staircase that led up to an

open hall on the second floor. At the top of this staircase hung a massive portrait of a

pudgy, white-haired man. A giant chandelier hung above the central hall, and

expensive decorations covered nearly every surface, speaking volumes about the

power of the man who lived here.

The expansive room looked like something from a movie. While I was busy taking it

all in, Uhna spoke up in a quiet voice.

"Isn't it strange, though? There aren't any guards…"

A flame flickered in the palm of Uhna's right hand. Apparently, she'd summoned her

spirit magic to take care of any guards.

"I assume they sent people out to deal with the fires in town." I followed Uhna into the

hall as I explained what had happened.

"That's pretty lucky then! We should be able to go straight to the marquis's chambers

and get our revenge!"

"Sounds good. Let's take care of this and get you two back home."

Uhna shot me a wide grin before taking off. An unnaturally strong breeze blew through

the room. The cloak covering her body fluttered about as she ran up the stairs to the

second floor. Ponta cried out excitedly as soon as it caught sight of her. The two of them

shared an affinity for wind magic. Ariane and I followed after her, all the way up to the

third floor.

There was something unsettling about the conversation the two elves had earlier that

stuck with me. I could understand the desire to take revenge on the man who'd

kidnapped these women, but we were talking about nobility here. Understandable or

not, this wouldn't end well. Still, there was so much I didn't know about the

relationship between this country and the elves that I wasn't in a position to say what

was right or wrong.

At the very least, I'd do whatever I could to make sure the marquis didn't learn who I

was.

Something caught my eye as we made our way up. I took it in my hand and looked it

over, but Ponta began crying out to get me to hurry up.

"Kyiii kyiiiiiiiii!"

I used Dimensional Step to move to the base of the stairwell leading up to the third

floor.

When I reached the top of the stairs, I heard a man and a woman screaming, followed

by a hideous crashing sound. A thud reverberated down the hall, and several

chambermaids appeared, running toward me. I put my back against the wall and stood

still next to another suit of armor, pretending to be a decoration. These chambermaids

would be witnesses to the events of this evening. I hoped to avoid them telling their

friends about the imposing, armored man they'd seen with the attackers. Since this

world lacked any form of radio, the information would stay local, and with all the other

people wandering around town in armor, the impact would likely be minimal, but I

figured it was better to be cautious.

Ponta seemed to catch on to what I was doing and stood stock still as the women ran

past us. From a distance, Ponta's fur probably looked like the crest on a Roman

soldier's helmet.

I turned to head in the direction that the women had come from.

The massive double doors, which looked as if they'd once been quite beautiful, had

been blown wide open. Body parts that I could only assume belonged to the guard

were scattered about. It was a pretty disturbing sight. I wondered which of the elven

women had done this.

I stepped over the carnage and went into the bedroom. Everything in the room, at least

to me, looked incredibly expensive. At the center stood a massive poster bed,

decorated with intricate carvings.

The room was illuminated by an object that looked like a candelabra, though, instead

of candles, there were glowing crystals inside it.

At the far wall of the bedroom stood a man whose face I'd just seen at the central

stairwell. The plump, white-haired man looked rather pathetic with his bottom half

exposed. A knife had been stabbed straight through his right hand, pinning him to the

wall.

A long-haired elven woman struck the man between his legs with a powerful kick.

"Gyaaaaaaaaaugh!!!"

The man—the marquis, I assumed—let out a scream like I'd never heard before. Even

though I was made up of nothing but bones, the power behind that scream made the

space between my own legs ache.

Unable to drop down since his hand was pinned to the wall, the marquis shuddered

as he tried to keep standing, sweat pouring off his body, drool dribbling down his chin.

He struggled to control his breathing as he glared at the intruders.

"Y-you think you c-c-can get away with this, do you?! I am a marquis in this country,

and if you think you can just…"

The marquis's thighs trembled with the effort of standing. His gaze grew harsher, as if

the women he was looking at were so much trash.

Ariane removed her hood, exposing her purple-tinged skin and untidy white hair,

which took on a slight blue glow under the light of the crystals. Just the sight of her

made the room feel cooler.

The way she spoke even made my blood run cold.

"Even if we were to kill you where you stand, this country holds no power over the

elves of Canada. After all, it's the people of Rhoden who broke their word first, is it

not?"

She ripped off a corner of the bed sheets and shoved them into the marquis's mouth.

After looking him over once more, she turned her back to him.

A magical aura emanated from the two elven women standing behind Ariane—Uhna,

who had led us here, and the long-haired woman who'd just kicked the marquis. I

assumed this was Sena, the other enslaved elf. She was practically nude, her long hair

plastered to her back with sweat, eyes ablaze with hatred for the marquis.

Ariane looked at me suspiciously. "Why are you wearing a curtain over your head,

Arc?"

I'd figured it would help conceal my identity, like a veil, though it really just made me

look like a person pretending to be a ghost at a student-operated haunted house.

"We can talk about that later. Don't you think it's unwise to kill Rhoden nobility?"

I tried dodging the subject. However, Ariane just looked at me as if I were some bizarre

creature.

"They were the ones who broke their promise first. What's wrong with me collecting

a penalty?"

It seemed like this world didn't have any sort of international conventions. Not only

were rules different from group to group, but what was natural and expected even

differed among species. I was just a mercenary here. Now that I'd raised my objection,

all I could do was watch the situation unfold.

I shrugged my shoulders and shook my head. "Nothing."

Ariane looked over her shoulder and locked eyes with the other two women. All three

of them nodded in agreement.

As if on cue, Uhna and Sena began brutally beating the marquis, his screams echoing

through the room as his blood showered the walls. It looked like a gang initiation that

I'd seen on some TV program. Even with my incredible strength, I wouldn't want to

anger these women…

No longer needing to conceal my identity, I took the curtain off my head and walked

away.

I looked around, trying not to think about the murder being carried out behind me. On

the other side of the room, I spied a sturdy-looking door with a heavy lock on it. The

lock was covered in intricate carvings, and it piqued my curiosity.

I drew my sword and cut through the door in a single diagonal slash. The two pieces

of it fell away, as if I'd dragged a sharp knife through paper. The lock was now a useless

decoration. I ripped what remained of the door off its hinges and stepped into the

room, a small space filled with expensive pieces of artwork and other knick-knacks

whose purposes I couldn't even begin to guess.

In the back of the room were several wooden chests stuffed with gold coins.

Part of me couldn't help but wonder why humans were so drawn to gold. The other

part of me, the human part, felt like I'd just uncovered a treasure trove, causing my

face to ease into a smile… Or, it would have, if I still had facial muscles.

There was no way I could take all the gold with me, but I could at least shove a fair

amount of it into my sack. Ariane said the marquis had acquired his wealth through

illegal means, so it wasn't like I could be criticized for this.

I hurriedly stuffed my sack with gold coins. I let out a self-deprecating laugh as I

realized that my actions weren't that far off from what the women were doing in the

other room. Still, I needed to be careful. Given the weight of gold, I risked having the

bag tear open if I got too greedy.

Then I noticed a sword mounted to the wall. The gleaming silver blade was covered in

symbols. A lion's head was carved into the hilt, its eyes a pair of red jewels.

I'd seen this sword before…

Back in the game, it was known as the Sword of the King of Lions, an incredibly rare

blade that boosted the user's speed and attack power. I had no idea if that would be

true in this world though.

I decided to take it with me. It'd be a shame to leave it here collecting dust.

I took the sword off the wall and slid it into the sheath hanging below before putting

both of them into my bag of treasure. Just then, I heard loud noises coming from the

bedroom.

"There are bandits in the marquis's chambers!"

"Let no one escape!"

I heard soldiers pouring into the room, one after another, their swords scraping

together as they crammed through the blown-apart doors. Moments later, I began

hearing explosions, followed by men's screams.

A particularly loud explosion shook the entire building. It was followed by the sounds

of something crumbling, then the roar of flames.

The building was on fire.

Ariane entered the room and called out to me in an exasperated voice.

"Just what are you doing, Arc?"

The dark elf stared at me with her arms crossed, a look of annoyance on her face. With

her cloak now discarded, her crossed arms rested atop her leather corset, propping

up her full chest from below, further accenting the twin peaks barely contained by her

armor.

From her point of view, it probably looked like I'd snuck off to steal a bunch of gold. If

only I had green cheeks, the look would be complete.

If there had been a chimney nearby, I might look like Santa Claus instead. But there

wasn't one in sight.

"It'll cost quite a bit of money to get the organization back together."

"Huh?"

She looked at me suspiciously, not understanding what I was saying. Finished with

their work, the other two elven women appeared behind her.

"Assuming someone wants to create another slave trading organization, they won't be

able to do it without this money as starting capital. If we bring the money with us, it

will slow down their activities."

I thought this was a nice-sounding excuse for why I was taking all the money. To be

fair, there was an element of truth to it.

Ariane exchanged looks with the women flanking her. After nodding in approval, they

also stepped into the room and begin shoving gold into leather bags. Sena was now

wearing Ariane's gray cloak, who also joined them.

"I'm impressed you can hold such a heavy bag without even breaking a sweat. It's gotta

be at least three times the weight of mine."

"I agree with what he said, but just how are we supposed to get out of here with all of

this weighing us down?"

"Yeah, it's heeeeeeavy."

The three women looked at me, surprised at the size of the bag I was carrying.

"Don't worry about that. He can use teleportation magic. It looks like we're done here,

so let's get going!"

"Wh-what?! Teleportation magic? By himself? I thought those were just fairy tales!"

"Hmph, I need more practice…"

While the three talked among themselves, I could hear more sounds coming from

downstairs. If we didn't leave soon, things were about to get much more complicated.

The three of them had finished collecting the rest of the gold in the room, so there

wasn't much else for us to do here.

"Time to leave town! Transport Gate!"

As soon as I summoned the spell, a magic pillar began glowing around us. The next

moment, we were standing on the opposite shore of the river in a grassy plain, looking

out over Diento.

"Looks like we escaped! I can't believe how convenient that teleportation magic is. I

wonder if there's some way I could use it…"

"No… No way! Was that really magic?!"

"Yaaaawn. I'm tired… Where are we anyway?"

The three elven women looked around in surprise. I was also surprised, but for a

different reason. Everything in the magic pillar had teleported with us. All the pieces

of artwork and various knick-knacks that had adorned the room were now lying about

in the open field.

Fires continued raging across the river in Diento, smoke rising into the sky. In fact, it

looked even worse than before. I remembered hearing the sound of fire crackling in

the marquis's residence.

"So, I suppose my job is complete?"

Ariane looked away from the scene unfolding across the river and shot me a wide grin.

She pulled ten elven coins out of her waist pouch, put them in a bag, and tossed them

my way.

"You were an incredible help. Here's your fee, plus the extra amount I promised. I

assume that's enough, though it's probably nothing compared to the money you stole."

I caught the bag in one hand and tossed it into the sack on my back.

"Much appreciated."

Ariane dropped the bag of gold from her shoulder and fixed me with a serious look.

"Listen, Arc… We're heading over to Lalatoya. It's the closest village. Why don't you

come with us and meet the village elder?"

I was taken aback by her suggestion, but I really did want to see an elf village. On the

other hand, I also wanted to avoid running into anyone important, and that included

village elders.

"I would love to come with you. But… is it necessary for me to meet with the elder?"

"Of course it is. We need to get permission from the elder just to invite an outsider into

the village. And, to be completely frank, I was hoping we could work with you again in

the future. To prove how much I trust you, I want to introduce you to the village elder,

one of the people I trust most in this world."

The two women standing beside Ariane looked surprised by her words, but they didn't

voice any objections.

"If you've come to trust me that much, then I won't lie to you. I'm afraid I can't meet

the elder. Not if it means taking off my armor."

"I mean, you would have to at least show your face. You won't change your mind?"

I simply nodded.

"May I ask why?"

It was hard to respond to that. I didn't want to lie to her, but I couldn't tell her the truth

either.

"If I were to take off my helmet, I may end up on the receiving end of your blade."

"What if I promised I wouldn't do that? Would you show me your face then?"

Her golden eyes were locked on me.

Would she turn against me? Or might she understand my plight? If I could see the

reaction of a person who'd grown to trust me this much, it may actually help me decide

how to continue living my life in this world. After all, there'd probably be many trials

waiting for me in the future.

I put my hands on the sides of my helmet. Ponta hopped off and landed easily on my

shoulder.

I slowly pulled the helmet from my head and faced the women.

The expressions on their faces betrayed their surprise.

Standing in front of them was an armor-clad skeleton, light blue flames flickering from

deep within its eye sockets, like a pair of disembodied souls.

The two elves on either side of Ariane took fighting stances and began summoning

their magic.

"Stop it!" Ariane threw out her arms, holding back her comrades.

"Arc, is that really… What happened…?"

Ariane did her best not to let her voice betray her surprise, but I still caught a hint of

it.

Obviously, I couldn't tell them that I'd woken up in a different world from my own and

was now living as my video game character. There was no way they'd understand.

"I don't quite know myself. But one day, I found myself in this body, all alone in the

country of Rhoden."

"He's not undead, is he?"

"A super strong undead in armor? That'd be awful!"

Sena and Uhna maintained their fighting stances and continued glaring at me. Ariane

remained calm, maintaining eye contact with me.

"He doesn't have the corruption of death on him. Besides, a spirit animal like the

cottontail fox wouldn't get so close to an undead monster. He was also able to perform

healing spells."

Ariane's words had the desired effect of at least getting the other two to stop and think.

"Huh? Now that you mention it, isthat a cottontail fox on his shoulder? A spirit animal?

What's going on here?"

"That's right. Corrupted undead can cast curses, but they wouldn't be able to use the

power of light to remove curses. This doesn't make any sense!"

Ariane laughed gently at their confusion. It seemed like the tension had eased slightly.

"Arc, you've done so much to help me and my companions. Your secret is safe with us.

If you've been cursed, then the elder may have some information that could help you."

"That would be greatly appreciated. Nothing would make me happier than to remove

this curse from my body." It would be nice to go back to having a flesh-and-blood body

that could actually respond to the sight of the beautiful women standing before me.

I put my helmet back on, thinking over my past actions and wondering why it was that

I'd ended up turning into my skeleton avatar in the first place.

"Let's start from the beginning. I am Ariane Glenys Maple, a soldier from the Maple

borough in the forest province of Canada. I would like to ask you again, Arc. Will you

come to our village?"

Ariane extended her right hand toward me. I reached out and took it.

"My name is Arc. I am on a journey to cleanse my cursed body. I will gladly take you

up on your offer."

Now that I'd finally put it into words, I decided that returning to my own world would

become my new goal.

I'd never actually considered that removing my curse could become the purpose of my

journey. I didn't even know if I was cursed. But so long as I continued to live like this,

I would face many hardships. If the elf elder had any wisdom to share with me, then

it'd be worth the journey.

"Well then, let's head up the river and join our friends!"

Ariane smiled at me and hefted the gold-filled bag over her shoulder. I lifted my own

bag from the ground and looked toward the forest, where the two rivers met.

It was still dark, and our path was lit only by the moon. But our course was clear.

"Let's get started, shall we?"