A member of the Sapphire Knight on the other end of the communication line trembled as he relayed the situation.
He said that a demonic creature appeared in the eastern region, which was under the responsibility of the Sapphire Knights, and unfortunately, civilians had not yet managed to evacuate.
Because of this, Gustav, in an attempt to protect the civilians, took the brunt of the demonic creature’s attack and collided his head, rendering him unconscious and unable to wake up.
Fortunately, the demonic creature itself was not of the threatening type like Orthros, so the knights rushed in and were able to neutralize it just moments ago.
However, with the sudden injury of their leader, the knights below him were understandably panicked. The voice coming through the communication sounded as if they were about to cry.
“Understood. I will take command in place of Vice Captain Gustav. First……”
I issued urgent instructions, providing them with a general direction to respond to the gaps we couldn’t fill.
As we continued talking, the knight seemed to have calmed down somewhat and ended the communication with words of gratitude.
‘…..Gustav is unconscious?’
It was not pleasant for me to acknowledge Gustav’s skills with my own mouth, but heaven had cruelly bestowed him with swordsmanship skill, alongside that rotten personality of his.
In any case, it also meant he was skilled enough to be promoted to Vice Captain at lightning speed.
Of course, I’ve never lost to him in a duel….. but that was not the point. No matter how careless he may have been, it was hard to believe that he ended up in such a state against a demonic creature of this level.
‘Did his skills become rusty from being involved in politics?’
I clicked my tongue. With the loss of such an important person, it would surely hinder our countermeasures against the demonic creatures.
For now, the knights would be responding according to the instructions in the designated areas, but if an Orthros-level demonic creature was involved in this outbreak, it would create many headaches.
‘I’ve already contacted Commander Geloic, but their unit is stationed far away. Even if they come on horseback, they won’t make it in time for the golden hour.’
With Gustav out of the picture, I had no choice but to handle the situation on my own.
It seemed like I might have to use the blue sword energy again, just like last time. This time, though, I was holding a good sword, and I was confident I could endure through sheer willpower without passing out.
I recalled the time when Ludger had become furious…
‘..…It can’t be helped since it’s necessary.’
Breaking the promise I made with him, that I would take care of myself, left me with a subtle sense of guilt.
Just then, the communication stone came to life again.
[Captain, it’s Billy!]
“Ah, I see. How’s it over there? Do you need more personnel?”
[That’s not it! The thief, Heilbronner, has arrived here!]
“What? Was there something he wanted to steal over there?”
The Silver Magnolia Branch was in the square where I was now, but what was this about? I was momentarily confused and glanced back at the glass box containing the Silver Magnolia Branch.
[No! Heilbronner appeared in our area, crushed the demonic creature, and then suddenly left!]
“……!”
I took a deep breath.
According to Billy’s explanation, an Orthros happened to appear on their side.
Considering the previous terrorism threat the imposter declared, saying they would “destroy the Silver Magnolia Branch”, I had suspected that an Orthros would likely appear. But for my prediction to turn out to be true…. This kind of deduction is one I would rather be wrong about, but it just left a bitter taste in my mouth.
It seemed that Sir Sein and the knights there were struggling to deal with the Orthros on their own, so they had no choice but to call for me. But at that moment, Heilbronner suddenly appeared.
Then, he used an incredibly powerful grand spell, beyond belief, to incinerate the Orthros and simply left.
“Heilbronner doesn’t show himself. How did you know it was him?”
[Before leaving, he revealed his identity to us and asked if any impostors claiming to be him had come this way!]
“Ah….”
[It seems that the real Heilbronner’s true goal was to catch the imposter!]
I bit my lip hard. For a moment, I felt a surge of relief, as if I had gained a thousand troops.
At the same time…
Despite not being able to shake off my doubts, I couldn’t deny the overwhelming feeling of gratitude, knowing that my trust in him had been rewarded.
“If I tell you I’m not responsible… will you believe me, Captain?”
“As I said, the suspicion will remain. However… if you say it’s not true, I’ll also consider that possibility.”
“……”
“I want to trust you, Young Duke, which is why I always remain cautious.”
Swallowing back my emotions, I spoke in a calm tone.
“…… Okay. Go clean up the aftermath with Sir Sein and gather anything that could serve as evidence. We’ll need to request the Mage Tower’s assistance later.”
[All right!]
“Contact me immediately as soon as it’s finished.”
[Yep!]
I disconnected the communication and quickly reached out to other areas to assess the overall situation.
At the same time, I learned that Ludger was moving through the areas where the demonic creatures had appeared, taking them down one by one.
‘…What on earth is this ability?’
As far as I knew, even the Master of the Mage Tower wasn’t at that level. Magic power had its limits; while it had strong instantaneous destructive power, its durability was relatively weak.
The fact that Heilbronner has taken down three demonic creatures in succession meant his ability was beyond the standard.
‘The only consolation now is that he is on our side.’
After hearing that all the demonic creatures that had appeared at once had been dealt with, I quickly gave instructions for the cleanup.
It seemed that the terrorists couldn’t prepare any more demonic creatures, as there were no further reports of demonic creatures’ appearances. After all, the fact that about five monsters had already appeared in the city was unprecedented.
I grasped my sword tightly.
The demonic creatures were silenced, but the ‘culprit’ had not yet appeared.
The Silver Magnolia Branch in the glass box was also intact.
There was a chance the culprit felt frustrated that the demonic creatures had been subdued sooner than expected and had left…
‘The impersonator’s goal is most likely to track down the thief Heilbronner.’
If that’s the case, then when Heilbronner showed up to steal the Silver Magnolia Branch as he had stated, the impostor would likely take action in some way.
I strengthened the nerves in my entire body with Spirit and became alert to my surroundings.
“……!”
Suddenly, I detected a strange sensation and raised my head. The disturbance I felt was not coming from the ground.
‘In the air!’
The moment I realized it, a dazzling explosion of fireworks erupted in the air, without a second’s delay. A massive vortex of flame spun wildly in all directions, centered around the glass box.
It was the barrier I had requested from the Mage Tower. It was designed so that if an unauthorized person approached the Silver Magnolia Branch, a defensive magic like this would activate.
Amidst the swirling flames, a blue aura trailed like that of an elegantly swimming fish, leaving a lingering afterimage.
Before I could even be mesmerized by the blue halo forming geometric patterns, something unexpected happened in the air.
The blue aura overwhelmed the flames, expanding their size. It was only a matter of moments before the flame barrier protecting the glass case began to dissipate.
Amidst the swirling blue aura, the transparent figure of a person flickered.
Although his form was not clearly visible, the fluttering cloak and silhouette made it immediately clear that he was the thief Heilbronner.
Heilbronner stepped into the air as if the sky were a grand stage, moving gracefully and elegantly.
At the miracle only a high-ranking mage could perform, some of the knights watching gasped in awe.
“As stated before, I, Heilbronner, will take the Silver Magnolia Branch.”
With his declaration, the glass box floated up into the air. Now that all magical obstacles had been dismantled, it was difficult for the knights to reach the airborne realm, which was beyond their reach.
‘Really….. his head works well.’
If he had approached from the ground, there would have been some obstruction due to the knights. To avoid that, he completely took control of the sky.
In the first place, this feat was only possible by breaking through the multiple barriers that the Mage Tower had erected.
“……!”
There was no time to be amazed. I immediately felt the anomaly with my skin.
Someone was on the roof of the building closest to where Ludger stood in the air.
It was not visible to the eye. It was just a slight movement that my sensitive senses picked up. However, I did not ignore the warning my instincts were sending and immediately launched myself into action.
“Everyone, be on your guard!”
I shouted at the knights to bring them back to their senses. Then, I quickly stepped onto the chimney that ran along the wall to plant my feet and rapidly ascended, charging upward.
Whoosh!
The moment my foot landed on the roof, a massive scarlet sword aura cleaved the air just narrowly missing me.
The figure on the roof, whose form was obscured and had unleashed the attack, was most likely the ‘Imposter of Heilbronner’.
‘It’s not magic… but Spirit?’
I had assumed that the person behind this incident was involved with black magic.
Thus, I had naturally expected them to use magic, but I was taken aback by the familiar Spirit technique I recognized.
