Chapter 53 - Chapter 52: The Marquis's Daughter Kidnapping, Part 1
Mika was enjoying Rish Village after a year's absence.
That said, a vacation in Rish Village, which basically has nothing, feels more like "enjoying the overwhelming amount of free time."
For this past year, Mika had spent time busy with activities at the academy, as an adventurer, and trying to interfere with the "Curse," among other things.
During his vacation, Mika spent his days at the church, and after Amalia and the others finished their work, he spent his time at home, living just as he did before attending the academy.
Kifrod made him play Buattre Heed with him every day, and Mika was repeatedly beaten soundly.
However, when Mika occasionally tricked Kifrod and turned the tables, Kifrod would start saying things like "Wait," which left Mika exasperated.
There's no "wait" when playing against a child who is almost a complete amateur. No "wait."
Mika was satisfied if he could trap Kifrod, so he would say, "That's fine," and accept the "wait," but it was troublesome that Kifrod would then win and gloat about it.
(...I'll never do this again.)
Mika thought this every time, but by the next day, Kifrod would pesteringly invite him again.
With that selfishness like a child throwing a tantrum, Mika would sigh and give in, thinking, "Well, I suppose I have no choice."
Mika also visited Ninetiana's house from time to time.
Mika decided to keep silent about nearly dying on his first quest, but Ninetiana quickly saw through his attempt to hide it.
"............There's something you haven't told me, isn't there?"
"There isn't anything like that~?"
Ninetiana's hand pinched Mika's cheek.
This person, it's like she has no preparatory movement, or rather, she makes absolutely no sign of moving.
Even though he could see it, Mika couldn't avoid her hand.
"There's something you're hiding, isn't there?"
"Hon wa ho wa hi wa he hen ho [There is nothing like that]." (T/N: Mika is stuttering to hide his lie)
A little more force was applied to the fingers pinching his cheek.
"............I-i-i-eh-fu [It hurts]." (T/N: Mika is stuttering again)
"Are you going to stay like this all day? I'll keep you company even for a whole night."
From Ninetiana's words, Mika felt a hint of seriousness.
He was forced to confess everything.
Mika was scolded severely and truly thanked for the luck of surviving.
And then, Ninetiana apologized to Mika.
"...It was my fault for teaching you halfway. I'm sorry."
This hurt Mika the most.
It was because of his own lack of resolve and his negligence in preparation, yet Ninetiana was the one bowing her head.
"Please, don't apologize like that! Isn't this entirely my own doing?"
"The cause of this was me. If I had taught you properly, this wouldn't have happened."
Mika deeply regretted his shallow actions that had made Ninetiana sad.
And so, he sincerely vowed never to be careless again and to pay the utmost attention to his preparations.
■■■■■■
Two weeks had passed since Mika returned to Rish Village, and tomorrow morning he was scheduled to be driven to Kotontesse by Horatio.
On the last night of staying at the Noisheim household, Mika asked Amalia and Loretta to sit at the table, and took a cloth bag from his rough satchel placed in the bedroom.
Mika placed the cloth bag on the table and pushed it toward Amalia.
The contents of the bag were money.
Fifty silver coins were inside.
With this, almost all the money Mika possessed was gone.
Of course, he had left enough for the return journey, and once he arrived in Sarbengeal, he wouldn't be completely destitute.
He left the minimum amount of money he thought necessary and handed over everything else to Amalia.
Amalia and Loretta seemed to have some idea of the contents, so they timidly opened the bag to check inside.
"Eh!?"
"Ugh!?"
The two were speechless at the large amount of money.
Even so, he had used some for souvenirs, so it had decreased quite a bit.
Since this was his first time returning home, he wanted to spend as much as possible on that as well.
He wanted to convey even a little gratitude to the people who had taken care of him.
"I can't accept this much, Mika. It will be needed for your life at the academy, won't it? Don't worry about the house, just use it for what you need. Okay?"
Amalia closed the mouth of the cloth bag and returned it to Mika.
"Wow, Mika. You've already saved up this much money. But don't push yourself too hard; you should use it for yourself, okay? Mika is working so hard at the academy [Over there]."
Loretta praised Mika's efforts and told him to use it for himself.
(Well, that's what I expected.)
These two.
Mika didn't expect them to accept it straightforwardly.
Mika consciously suppressed his rising emotions.
"Am I sending money via letters? Are you using it?"
Mika pressed his lips together and looked straight at Amalia.
"Eh, y-yes, of course. It's been very helpful. Thank you, Mika. So, this money is————"
"You aren't using it."
Interrupting Amalia's words, Mika declared firmly.
At Mika's words, Amalia and Loretta widened their eyes in surprise.
"As I wrote in the letter, it's fine to save it. But since there might come a time when it's needed, please put this in that savings as well."
At Mika's extremely serious expression, both Amalia and Loretza closed their mouths and looked down.
Mika vaguely felt that the Noisheim household had "some kind of situation."
Amalia and Loretta were working, yet even so, it was difficult to survive the winter.
He thought this was certainly strange.
However, Mika was hesitating on whether he should delve into that "situation."
So, he was sending money little by little, thinking, "At least this much."
"It's not that much, but I can now earn money with my own hands."
Mika looked at Amalia.
Amalia had a painful, suffering expression on her face.
"I don't use much money at the academy, so I'm fine. I have other savings as well, so please accept this as is."
This was a lie.
But he intended to make it so in the future.
Looking at Loretta, she had a sad face.
He hadn't prepared this money to make them look like this, though.
"Please."
When Mika bowed his head, he heard Loretta sniffle her nose loudly.
"............Very well."
Amalia smiled sadly.
"Thank you, Mika. But, Mother doesn't want you to do anything too dangerous."
Saying that, she stood up from her seat and came to Mika's side.
She gently stroked Mika's head.
"Mother doesn't understand much... but there must be dangerous things, right?"
Mika knew that telling the truth would make them sad.
That's why Mika had not told them that he was active as an adventurer.
He couldn't tell them that he had nearly died, etc.
But he didn't want to lie anymore.
"......Yes."
So, he answered only that.
Loretta suddenly stood up from her seat and hugged Mika tightly without saying a word.
Amalia gently hugged Loretta and Mika, who were hugging each other.
(...As I thought, there must be something going on.)
Mika was convinced that his prediction was correct.
But Mika, for now, couldn't do much to help.
Because tomorrow morning, he would have to leave Rish Village to return to the academy.
Mika thought about what he should do from now on and slept that night.
■■■■■■
Tuesday of the 5th week of the 3rd Month of Earth.
He only needed to return to the academy within this month, so Mika left Rish Village with plenty of time.
It was already the third day since leaving Rish Village.
He was scheduled to arrive in Sarbengeal by this evening.
Mika loosened his stiff body at the second rest stop, stood in the grass along the road until the departure time of the stagecoach, and listened to the rustling of the trees and the chirping of small birds.
There was a forest a little distance away, and it seemed a small stream flowed in front of it, so he could hear the sound of flowing water as well.
("Hell's Ears" [D0ruiya]... I should think of a formal "Magic Name" for this soon.)
Standing blankly in the grass... like that, he was thinking such things.
It's a spell he uses often, but somehow the image in his mind became that of a certain anime, and other "Magic Names" didn't fit.
He felt like the "Conditioning" was already registered with this "Magic Name."
Gata-goto, gata-goto, gata-goto.
Grimacing at the sound of a carriage passing on the road, Mika lowered the volume of "Hell's Ears" a little.
Amplifying all sounds was indeed a flaw of this magic.
For the sake of it, the human brain is equipped with a function to distinguish sounds.
No matter how noisy it is, it makes it easier to recognize only the sounds he needs or pays attention to.
It's what is commonly called the Cocktail Party Effect.
Therefore, it wasn't particularly strange that Mika noticed that "sound."
Even if the sound of the carriage wheels was loud, to Mika, it was an unnecessary sound.
There were other sounds mixed in that Mika should be paying attention to.
Mika looked around and searched for the source of that sound.
Nothing resembling it could be found within the visible range.
But, by listening carefully to the sound, he noticed it.
(The sound is moving away...?)
Mika looked around again and focused his attention on the carriage he had just passed.
He raised the volume he had lowered once again.
While mixed with the grating sound of the wheels, he could hear that "sound" faintly.
(...There it is.)
Mika hurriedly went to the side of the stagecoach and confirmed that no one was paying attention to him.
"Limiter Off, Absorb."
Mika prepared to manifest [God's Miracle].
If he forgot this, it was an instant fail; Mika would lose consciousness without question.
"......Great Fire God, the spark of creation. O Great Divine Descendant, God of Surging and Bursting Power. Hear my prayer, cast off hardships, and grant me the mighty power to crush suffering."
Hiding behind the stagecoach, he manifested [Physical Enhancement].
A momentary discomfort in his physical condition due to lack of mana. He closed his eyes and endured it.
It wasn't a big problem even if someone saw him, but when [Physical Enhancement] manifests, a mirage briefly covers Mika's entire body.
Since he didn't want to stand out too much, he hid himself to disguise the mirage.
Mika took out a wooden tag serving as a ticket from his rough satchel and quietly placed it on the cargo bed.
Then, acting naturally, he stepped out onto the road and chased the carriage while being careful not to stand out.
The carriage Mika chased looked like an ordinary cargo wagon at first glance.
However, it wasn't running at the slow speed of a stagecoach, but at more than double that speed.
Running at such a speed would tire the horses immediately.
But the carriage continued to run without caring about such things.
Along the way, it left the road and entered a side path. Watching carefully from a distance, another carriage was waiting.
When several men got off the carriage, two of them lowered a wooden box from the carriage.
They looked like a group of villains drawn on a picture, impossible to mistake for ordinary people.
If this were a drama, one wouldn't be surprised if the contents of the wooden box were drugs or guns, but Mika had an idea of the contents thanks to "Hell's Ears."
One of the villains opened the lid of the wooden box and stuck his hand inside.
From the wooden box, a girl whose mouth was covered with cloth like a gag and whose hands and feet were tied was pulled out by her collar.
(As I thought...)
Mika had heard the girl's painful moans and her sobbing sounds.
If it were just that, she might have just been crying, but the abnormally muffled moaning sound was strangely concerning.
And as he followed the carriage, he occasionally heard the men's voices.
"......Fifty gold coins for just one brat like that...."
"......It was easier work than I thought...."
"......We brought her out unharmed, so the reward is doubled, right...."
"......It took time, but this isn't bad...."
He confirmed these conversations while following behind.
Without a doubt, this was kidnapping.
Mika was gathering information to see if he could somehow rescue her.
(Finally, I know the number of bandits. ............But eight people. That's too many, as expected.)
In a situation where the girl is being held hostage, charging in recklessly is not a good strategy.
Even if he suddenly fired "Stone Bullet," he couldn't confidently hit all eight of them for sure.
If there were no hostages, could he handle eight people at once?
(...It would look cool if I could say that. Unfortunately, I'm not the type of hero.)
He couldn't fight like the protagonist of a movie or anime.
Doing something reckless would endanger not only Mika's life but also that girl's life.
He had to be cautious.
While Mika hid behind a tree and watched, the men's vulgar laughter came to his ears.
"We've reached this far, so we can rest easy for now. Put that brat in the carriage."
A man who seemed to be the leader instructed the man grabbing the girl.
"Haha-haa. Is it really okay to have such easy work? Just carrying a brat and sneaking past the slum walls into the city?"
"I've been hiding in the slums for nearly a year! In a gloomy town like that, you can't even have fun properly."
"Let's get away from such a gloomy country quickly. Once we return to Shaksara, we can live and play for a while."
The men were saying all sorts of self-indulgent things.
Amidst that, the girl was dragged along and taken to the waiting carriage.
"Do you think you could have done this easily without me?"
One man stepped forward in front of the leader.
Among the gang of villains, one man stood out like a sore thumb.
His appearance was neat, and although he wasn't a butler, his clothing showed a refinement close to that of a butler.
However, since he was in such a gang of villains, it was certain that he wasn't a decent person either.
"Yes, I know, Bogeiza. It's all thanks to your cooperation. Right, everyone."
At the leader's joking greeting, the men around him also nodded with vulgar laughter.
"As expected of Mr. Bogeiza. You're good at tricking brats."
"That's right. 'I want to go to the academy,' was it? You managed to bring the brat along with such a boring story."
"Maybe you're suited for being a pimp? When we get to Shaksara, shall I introduce you to some work?"
They mocked the man called Bogeiza while laughing mockingly.
"Then increase my share even more! This plan was based on my cooperation from the beginning, right!"
Bogeiza pressed the leader without trying to hide his irritation.
"Hey, hey, don't say that now, Mr. Bogeiza? We had a lot of trouble preparing things too? How could you escape safely all by yourself?"
Bogeiza glared at the leader as if to grab him, but the leader didn't care at all.
However, the leader clapped his hands deliberately and smiled at Bogeiza with a grin.
"Yes, there is a good way to increase your share————."
Goshu!
The man behind Bogeiza, who had drawn his sword without anyone noticing, cut Bogeiza down.
Cut diagonally from behind, Bogeiza died without even being able to moan.
"Nnnnnnnnnnnn......!!!"
The girl who was about to be put on the carriage saw Bogeiza being cut and let out a scream that wasn't quite a scream.
"If one person is reduced, the share per person increases. A good method, isn't it? Right, Mr. Bogeiza?"
Without needing instructions from the leader, the men stuffed Bogeiza into the wooden box.
And so, they loaded him onto the carriage they had come in.
"......So, were you really glad to have cut him? He was a friend, wasn't he?"
"Stop with the jokes. If there was no plan, I would have killed him long ago. ......I'm really angry at this guy."
When the leader spoke, the man who had cut Bogeiza angrily brushed his sword and sheathed it.
The man roughly wiped away the splattered blood under his eyes.
There was a large wound there.
"Shut up, you brat!"
One of the men slapped the girl.
It seemed he was bothered by the girl who couldn't scream after seeing someone being cut.
The girl fell to the ground.
"Now, now, don't get angry. Ah, you were scared, weren't you? It's okay now, Uncle will protect you."
Another man, holding a knife in one hand, picked up the fallen girl.
"But, if you don't be quiet, you might get hurt again, you know?"
Saying that, the man made a single scratch on the girl's cheek with the knife.
"———————!!!"
The girl endured desperately, trying to hold back her scream.
"That's right, good girl. If you're a good girl, I'll fix it properly."
Saying that, the man put away his knife and took out a Potion from his pocket.
He carelessly splashed the Potion on the girl's face, and the swelling from the slap and the knife wound healed in an instant.
"Uncle and the others also want to take the young lady out unharmed, but————"
Saying that, he pulled the girl's long hair and forced her to look up.
"If you're too noisy, you might get hurt in a way that even a Potion can't heal, you know? Uncle and the others don't want to have our reward reduced, you know? So please, you know."
The girl, with tears streaming down her face, nodded desperately.
Mika watched this whole sequence while hiding behind a tree at a distance.
Gritting his teeth, he struggled to endure.
(Those guys...!)
Mika was desperately trying to suppress the impulse to charge in recklessly and run wild.
Probably, even then, things would have worked out somehow.
Except for one man————.
Mika didn't join in the men's commotion at all and couldn't take his eyes off the man who was quietly watching the surroundings from a little distance away.
A thin man with a pale face, radiating a creepy atmosphere.
Only one person was on a different level.
If it weren't for this man, he could manage with a surprise attack.
But because of this man's presence, he realized that he absolutely couldn't save the girl just by taking them by surprise.
(I'm sorry...)
In his heart, Mika apologized for his own powerlessness that prevented him from saving her right now.
All he could do was apologize.
For now, still......
The carriage the gang of villains switched to seemed to belong to some trading company.
A mark Mika didn't recognize was painted on the cover, and unlike before, the speed of progress was just a little faster than normal.
Mika raised his alert level after actually seeing the men's figures.
He decided to prioritize not being noticed by the men, even though he couldn't hear what was inside by keeping a large distance.
The carriage passed through a post town, ignoring rest stops along the way, and was heading straight for Yaunasun.
(...Are they going to Yaunasun as is? If so, if I talk to the guards in Yaunasun, they might help somehow...?)
The sun was already setting, and about three hours had passed since Mika started chasing the carriage.
At this pace, it would take about 5 to 6 more hours to reach Yaunasun.
Did they intend to avoid Yaunasun and proceed all night?
In that case, it would be impossible for Mika alone to continue the pursuit.
Even if the drivers were rotated among the men, the horses would need to rest somewhere.
But if they just prepared another carriage and switched over, following alone would reach its limit.
(...What should I do? What should I do?)
Mika was anxious.
His own limits of physical strength, mental strength, and concentration.
The limits of the girl placed in an extreme situation.
Carrying anxiety, impatience, and guilt, Mika glared at the carriage sinking into the twilight.
And so, while sinking into the darkness himself, he gradually shortened the distance between him and the carriage.