Chapter 282
After an entire day of traveling by carriage, Simon developed the habit of resting his chin on his hand while staring at the scenery outside.
As time passed, even the vast, monotonous brown land began to change. Patches of green gradually appeared, and trees and shrubs started to grow thicker.
“When people hear ‘Neutral Zone’, they all just picture barren wastelands or deserts!”
Seiyur pushed his bangs back with the back of his hand and spoke with a know-it-all tone.
“That’s just a stereotype. In truth, there are plenty of areas that haven’t gone through desertification yet!”
He explained that the more central areas were deserts, but the farther one went to the outskirts, the more forests one would see.
In other words, Team 7 and Seiyur were headed to the outskirts.
During the long carriage ride, Simon had to listen to Seiyur’s hundreds of achievements so many times he felt his ears would fall off.
Dick became completely absorbed in Seiyur’s heroic tales and turned into a devoted fan, and Maelyn, needing to earn good grades, did her best to play along. Kamibarez just nodded with a smiling face.
And so, quite a bit of time passed.
“We’ve arrived.”
They had reached their destination. The village, called Kelso, looked like a blend of a city and a jungle.
Apparently advanced in construction, they could see buildings made of real masonry. Yet the plants here were so tenacious that shoots burst out from between tiles and bricks. Huge vines even wrapped around entire structures.
It seemed the people living here had long given up trying to remove the endlessly growing plants.
“Ugh, my butt feels flat.”
Dick groaned dramatically as he got off the carriage. The other team members followed behind, stretching their limbs.
Their whole bodies were stiff from being cramped in the small space.
“Alright, agents. Attention, please!”
Seiyur gathered everyone’s attention and spoke in a serious voice.
“There is a Saintess Candidate in this town.”
With that one sentence, tension swept over them. The four others straightened up with serious expressions.
“If we’re even a step late, there’s a chance priests are already lurking in this town. But don’t worry too much.”
Seiyur pushed his bangs back again and flashed a shining smile.
“Because this Seiyur will block any kind of white magic!”
“You’re always so reliable, Agent Seiyur!”
“Your task is to focus on the search and locating the target. No matter what, do not engage or attack the priests first.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Then, let the mission begin.”
Seiyur confidently raised a thumbs-up.
“For the future of our Dark Alliance!”
“Yeeees!”
Dick raised his arm high to boost morale.
“……The future of the Dark Alliance, even.”
Maelyn murmured quietly.
Anyway, the operation had begun. Seiyur pressed himself against the building wall and began to walk, silencing his footsteps.
Hiding in the building’s shadow, he peeked around cautiously, then gestured them forward as if the coast was clear. The four followed quickly behind.
Clack!
Returning into the alley, he once again pressed himself against the building and, with a careful face, opened the lid of a trash can.
“Be careful. There could be traps set by priests.”
Maelyn made a face of disbelief.
“In a trash can?”
Seiyur moved busily, picking up trash and discarded clothes from the ground. If something had a lid, he opened it. Anything he could check, he did.
Dick, claiming to be his devoted assistant, mimicked his every move from behind.
“I think I’m starting to feel disillusioned here.”
Sitting with her knees together, Maelyn lifted a piece of trash with her index finger and said,
“Securing the Saintess Candidate is the top priority, right? Instead of wasting time on nonsense like this, shouldn’t we just go straight to the destination and—”
“Found it.”
Seiyur lifted the lid of a trash can to reveal a glowing white holy magic circle.
“Huh? W-what? There really is something? In the trash can?”
As Maelyn stepped closer in shock, Seiyur shouted,
“Watch out!”
Suddenly, a holy shot launched with a thump! from the magic circle in the trash can.
“Waaah!”
As she stumbled back in a panic, Seiyur leapt like a painting into place in front of her and unfurled a defensive magic circle.
“Be careful.”
He said calmly.
The holy shot hit the defensive circle but didn’t vanish. Instead, it squirmed like a living creature.
“It appears to be a white magic imbued with will. There may be a high-ranking priest among the enemies.”
Seiyur extended his palm.
“Let’s seal it.”
Swish!
From the magic circle, a jet-black arm shot out, grabbed the holy light, dragged it inside, and with a clang, it vanished.
“Are you alright, Agent Maelyn?”
He offered his hand to the fallen Maelyn.
She nodded and took his hand, getting back up.
“S-sorry.”
“It’s fine. Mistakes happen. But from now on, please follow my instructions more strictly.”
Seiyur and Dick moved forward again, while Kamibarez and Simon approached Maelyn.
“Are you okay, Maelyn?”
“Ah, yeah.”
She gave a sheepish smile.
“H-he really is amazing…… huh?”
“He must be. He was selected as a mentor from Keyzen, after all!”
As the two girls chatted, Simon wore a grave expression.
‘I didn’t react at all.’
To be exact, not only did he fail to respond, he hadn’t even sensed the incoming holy power.
‘……I thought my sensitivity to holiness had improved through Professor Farahan’s class.’
Simon walked forward with doubt swirling in his mind.
Seiyur was taking a very roundabout path.
He said there were signs of priests and entered a different alley, or he’d point to someone on the street claiming they might be a priest, then take a huge detour.
Eventually, they discovered the house of the girl who was the Saintess Candidate.
“From here, we’ll need to go in head-on.”
Seiyur spoke in a heavy voice like a commander before a war.
“The priests will definitely attack. I’ll handle both offense and defense alone, so you all focus solely on getting to the destination. Ready?”
“Yes!”
“Powerful white magic might fly at you. Keep your bodies low, protect your heads, and run. Now then—”
Tat!
Seiyur shot out of the alley.
“Run!”
With Dick in the lead, followed by Maelyn, Kamibarez, and then Simon, they dashed forward.
The street was completely empty. The house where the girl resided stood straight ahead.
“Huh? What’s this? It’s a piece of cake.”
No sooner had Dick said that—
BOOOOOOM!
The attack really began. Blinding flashes flickered in the sky, and holy projectiles began bombarding the ground indiscriminately.
“Kyahhhhhh!”
“Ugh!”
The team members wrapped their arms over their heads and ran. The way the holy projectiles poured down looked just like a meteor shower.
“Not a chance!”
And thus, Seiyur’s moment of glory began. He appeared with his long sleeves fluttering.
“I won’t let anyone lay a hand on my juniors!”
Seiyur’s movements were nothing short of flamboyant.
He would appear beside the students sprinting with their heads down, deploy defensive magic circles to block holy shells, or flick away priests charging down alleyways with a mere gesture.
“Keep running, full speed ahead!”
With a wave of his arm, the ground rose like a wall to block the holy bombardment. Even when magic circles filled with Exorcism bloomed in the sky, they were nullified and scattered with a single motion from his hand.
“W-Wow! This is insane! Agent Seiyur must be at least Keyzen-professor level!”
Dick was practically grinning from ear to ear. Maelyn and Kamibarez were too focused on running with their heads down to respond.
Bringing up the rear while keeping an eye on the team, Simon blinked with an expression completely devoid of tension.
‘This is definitely an incredibly dangerous situation. So why does it feel so calm?’
He wondered if his nerves had broken. Simon found himself observing the situation with a composure that bordered on detachment.
It felt more like he was out for a neighborhood jog than in the middle of a battlefield.
“We’re here!”
Dick ran up and grabbed the doorknob.
“It’s locked from the inside!”
“Move, commoner!”
Maelyn conjured a magic circle in her palm, froze part of the door, then shattered it with a kick.
The four burst into the house.
“Ah, I don’t think anyone’s here?”
It was a very old and shabby home. The four spread out to search, but the house was already empty.
Just then, they heard Seiyur’s voice from beyond the window.
“Hahaha! Flee with your tails between your legs! Witness the greatness of me, the mightiest Necromancer in Vengeance! Seiyur!”
He shouted in a theatrical tone and then casually entered the house.
“The target?”
“Seems like she’s not here.”
Upon hearing that report, Simon saw Seiyur display a clearly flustered expression for the first time.
“N-Not here? That can’t be……”
Dick quickly interjected.
“She must’ve already been kidnapped by the priests! Has to be! There were so many of them attacking earlier, remember?”
“……”
But Seiyur stood there, vacant, as if he didn’t even have the presence of mind to respond.
“Agent Seiyur?”
“Ah, mm! It’s nothing.”
He snapped back to attention and spoke.
“I’ll go chase after the fleeing priests. You agents gather intel through local questioning about where the girl may have gone.”
Maelyn stepped forward.
“Agent? Based on everything, it’s obvious she was taken by the priests. Wouldn’t it make more sense if we all pursued together?”
“Absolutely not…! Ahem. I alone am more than enough to deal with the priests. Please follow my instructions here.”
Leaving only those words behind, Seiyur dashed out.
The four were left standing alone.
‘Hmm.’
Simon glanced outside. Despite the earlier chaos of holy bombardment, the village looked strangely peaceful.
“Sigh, I still don’t get it, but orders from a mentor are absolute.”
Maelyn crossed her arms.
“Let’s split up and investigate, just like he said.”
“Okay! What was the girl’s name again?”
“Sasha.”
The three of them split off to gather information.
“Simon?”
Just as she was about to leave the house, Kamibarez turned back. Simon waved with a smile.
“I’ll look around this house a bit more.”
“Ah, okay!”
Kamibarez exited, and Simon began leisurely investigating the house.
[Kuhuhuhu! How ridiculous!]
Feer’s voice rang out in his mind.
[That Seiyur guy’s obviously a clown, hasn’t even the boy figured that out yet?]
‘I’ve got a hunch, but no solid proof yet.’
Simon’s concern lay elsewhere for now.
He recalled Seiyur’s clearly panicked face upon hearing the girl was gone.
‘Whatever else is going on, this mission seems genuine. For now, let’s stay focused on the job.’
[Kuhuhuhu! No harm in saving the fancy cake for later, right?]
For now, the priority was to find the girl, the Saintess Candidate. Simon meticulously searched the house for clues.
‘Leaves?’
Even indoors, there were lots of leaves and twigs along with strands of hair.
There was also a worn-out dress, a teddy bear missing one eye, and a draft blowing through the decrepit home.
He was able to gather several pieces of information.
The girl who lived here was poor. She lived alone, without parents. But there were also signs that someone else had been coming and going.
As he scanned the area, Simon headed toward the storage room. The door was locked.
“Overlord. If you would.”
CRASH!
A bladed tentacle shot out from the air and shattered the door.
Simon stepped inside.
“……!”
His expression turned ice cold.
[What is it, boy?]
Simon opened what looked like an abandoned rag bundle in the corner. Inside were various syringes and strange vials of medicine.
‘What in the world was going on in this house?’
“Simon!”
Just then, Kamibarez’s voice called out.
When Simon returned to the living room, she was pressed against the window.
“Please come quickly! Maelyn found an important clue!”
Superb.
When are we getting more free chapters?
Thanks for the new chapters