Chapter 242 - The Siege of Migul and Levante's Resolve
The city of Migul was formed around a central hill where the government office and the ruins of the grand cathedral destroyed by Racshell stood, with four administrative districts surrounding it. I rushed to Marina's side. From the window of her study in the Starunion mansion, I could see the cityscapes of those districts. A sea of reddish-brown roofs stretched out, and beyond them, I saw a low, trapezoidal hill. Atop it was a massive building that reflected the sunlight, and that was Migul's government office. However, that symbol of the city was now spewing black smoke that seemed to cover the sky. I could see flames as well. It was a building made of marble. The interior must be burning. They had to have already been breached.
"What a foolish thing to do..."
Marina muttered, her shoulders trembling.
"Merianne..."
She'd said the representatives of the Four Regent Houses were gathered there. I had to rescue her, no matter what. Just then, the sound of clashing swords from below cut through my thoughts. I looked down to see numerous armed soldiers climbing over the iron-barred fence. Knights from within the mansion rushed out to stop them, and the skirmish quickly escalated into a group battle. Another explosion erupted, blowing the fence away. A fresh wave of soldiers began to pour through the breach. The defenders were instantly pushed into a disadvantage. I grit my teeth as I watched the scene unfold. This mansion wasn't built for combat.
"To think they'd attack this mansion..."
"Are these Zeno's men?"
"Yes. That is the uniform of their house."
Marina's lips tightened into a firm line as she looked down on the scene. The battle unfolding below was a group engagement. There was no longer a place for adventurers. It was a shame that we had dismissed most of our allies this morning when they were all gathered at our home. But if Zeno was mobilizing troops to take over the city, his targets would be the government office, the mansions of the Four Regent Houses, and military facilities. There shouldn't be attacks elsewhere. If he were moving a large army, Marina would have caught wind of it much earlier. Therefore, Zeno's forces couldn't be that numerous. In any case, it seemed best to head for Merianne's rescue now. I turned around, thinking this, and was surprised to find Fam, Mizuki, Maira, and Marmie standing right behind me.
"Aira is at the magic academy. I have to check if she's safe. And the crystal core Mash brought is at the church. It'll be terrible if it's targeted."
Maira clenched the hand she held to her chest. She was right. We had to regroup with them as soon as possible.
"You're right. First, we need to go get Cecily and Aira."
"If they're inside the magic academy, they should be fine. That place has a degree of autonomy, and some of the world's most prominent mages are gathered there. It won't fall so easily even if attacked,"
Marina replied.
"But this is Zeno's rebellion, right? In that case, couldn't some of his sympathizers have infiltrated the school?"
"That is..."
She hesitated. She didn't have a grasp on the situation. Her husband, Augustus, was also at the government office. She had to be worried. We needed to repel the attackers at the mansion as quickly as possible, assess the city's situation, and decide on our next move.
"Master."
Fam pressed herself against me.
"Please let me go look for Sam."
Mizuki also looked up at her words.
"I need to meet with Yuuki and stop this battle, too."
"Both of you, wait. All we know is that the government office has been attacked and this mansion is under siege. We don't even know if Yuuki or Clovis are involved."
As I answered, Marmie pulled on the hem of my shirt.
"...I do not believe Zeno and Clovis are acting without coordinating. To seize control of Migul, they must eliminate the threat of the otherworldly heroes in this city."
"The Special Skill users?"
Marmie nodded. Their abilities ranged from the ridiculous, like summoning massive quantities of condoms, to the powerful, like negating all forces, and even the invincible, like Goddess Summon, which could overturn any disadvantageous situation. She was right. Even if Zeno succeeded in suppressing the city, if the otherworldly heroes here launched a counterattack, it would be difficult for ordinary soldiers to stop them.
"But would the transferees really fight for the city? I think they'd run."
If I didn't have any ties here, I would have thought of running away first thing.
"...It is also possible they made their move because they have a way to eliminate the threat of the otherworldly heroes."
"Come to think of it, Yuuki said his Special Skill, Kokusanzo, lets him hold up to three Special Skills from enemies he's defeated..."
It's not possible for someone else to acquire a Special Skill that another person already has. But, like Ito, by creating a clone of himself, he was able to use the same Special Skill. It was unclear what 'defeating' specifically meant, but if Yuuki were able to use Goddess Summon, combined with his partner Oi's defensive abilities, he would seem invincible. In that case, it was possible that Zeno was leading the suppression of the city's authorities while Clovis was heading to eliminate those who could use Special Skills.
"...Patricia is at the house. She serves me. I must protect her no matter what."
Marmie turned her back and headed for the door. I grabbed her hand.
"Don't go alone. If you're going, all of Levante goes!"
She turned and looked up at me. It was a glaring gaze. I flinched at the harsh look from her, who rarely showed her emotions.
"...I have Wake. After that, I also have to protect House Starunion. I'm leaving the party."
"No. Can the two of you handle a group of attackers? If we go, we go together."
"...You're the one who can't use Goddess Summon until tomorrow morning, Mash. You should stay here. Besides, once Cecily and Aira return to Levante, there won't be a place for me anyway."
Marmie cast her eyes down, averting her gaze.
"Don't be ridiculous! Right now, you are Levante. We act together!"
When I tried to pull her arm, Marmie pushed back.
"...Even if I were somewhere else, you wouldn't worry about me like you do for those two, would you, Mash?"
"Of course I would!"
"...Then why can't you worry about Patricia in the same way?"
"That's because she's with Hyakka and the others..."
It wasn't just Patricia. There was Claire from the Mateo Trading Company, Yanan of the Mole Folk, Karpana and the Wandering People, Rinko and Airi, the members of Neko no Ko Koneko, and High Priest Elisha... thinking about any of my associates being targeted made me feel like I would go mad with anger and agitation.
Marmie looked down and shook my arm off.
"...If they are trying to eliminate Clovis and the other otherworldly heroes, their first target will be that house. In any case, I am going to bring Patricia back."
As she tried to head for the door again, Marina stood in her way.
"Wait. This mansion is under attack. What do you intend to do by bringing Patricia to a place like this?"
Several whistling sounds tore through the air, followed by the sound of shattering glass. A number of arrows were sticking out of the study ceiling. Peeking outside from the shadows, I saw soldiers with crossbows reloading. The force besieging the mansion seemed to be around four hundred. The defenders numbered two hundred. They had already given up on defending the garden and had retreated into the mansion to fight. However, the mansion seemed too large to defend with that number of people. Marina's study had been serving as the command center, but since both messages and orders took time to relay from this top floor, Marina decided to move downstairs.
"Mash, you and your group guide the non-combatants to the upper floors for evacuation."
I nodded at Marina's words.
"Shizuka, you and Lini, please help guide people on the upper floor. Toratsuna, I want you to protect them."
"The encirclement is thin. We could break through and escape on our own."
Toratsuna whispered in my ear.
"We can't just leave Marina and run. But if you guys want to escape, I'll help."
I answered, but honestly, I was reluctant to get involved in a fight between people.
"Marmie, where are the people in this mansion who need to be evacuated?"
"...There is a place where the kitchen staff and other servants gather."
"Alright, let's hurry."
I led Levante through the stone-paved corridor, which was littered with shards of glass. This mansion had a square, donut-shaped structure. And it was five stories tall. Being made of stone, it wouldn't be easily destroyed. However, with features like large windows designed for letting in light, it clearly wasn't built with being attacked in mind. In the garden, soldiers lay fallen, and it was impossible to tell friend from foe. Currently, the enemy soldiers who had entered the garden were being shot at from the windows. The enemy soldiers, in turn, were hiding behind the gazebo and the garden's stone borders, firing back with crossbows. The battle had reached a stalemate. I was worried about the others, too. But to do anything, we had to break through this siege. I still couldn't bring myself to make the decision to have Fam and the others turn their weapons on people, like we did with the pirates.
"Mash!"
I was called out to and stopped in surprise as an arrow flew past where I had been. I hurriedly moved away from the window, out of the enemy's line of fire.
"We are in the middle of a battle, you know?"
Maira's tone was unusually harsh. Under the circumstances, it couldn't be helped.
"Sorry."
When I apologized, Maira blinked once. Then, she reached out and took my arm.
"Mash, I think we should have taken Toratsuna-san's suggestion."
"There's no way we can just abandon Marmie's mother and run."
"That's the thing. Please don't forget that we are just adventurers. What can we do in this situation? Besides, is it okay to leave Shizuka and Lini in a place like this? Staying here won't fulfill anyone in Levante's wishes."
"Are you saying we should run, Maira?"
It was true that if we could break through the siege, we'd be more mobile, and if we could rendezvous with Karpana and the Wandering People outside the city, our safety would be guaranteed.
"No. Mash, you've saved us from many perilous situations. Even when you were initially hesitant, you always assessed the situation and made the right call. You are without a doubt my hero. But right now, you can't use your Special Skill, can you?"
"So what if I can't use Goddess Summon and call Racshell?!"
"Your decisiveness and ability to make tough choices are backed by the belief that Lady Racshell will sort things out in the end, aren't they? You say you have no faith, but you believe in Lady Racshell. That's why you're lost right now with no ideas, isn't it? Aren't you just letting yourself be swept away by the situation?"
Maira stared at me, and I averted my gaze. But where I looked, there were Fam, Mizuki, and Marmie. Their lips were pressed into a firm line as they watched me. They had their own worries. But right now, they were worried about me.
"You're right, Maira. I should be protecting you all first and foremost, but I'd lost sight of my priorities..."
"I don't expect you to protect us right now. Because right now, the weakest one here is you, Mash. We will protect you. No matter what the outcome may be."
With that, Maira smiled. I opened my arms and hugged all four of them.
"No matter what happens, Levante is together. No matter what, the five of us will get through this!"
"Yes!" "Master." "...Okay." "Understood."
Their replies were all different. But that was fine. We were together because we were all different.
"Alright, first, let's evacuate the non-combatants to the upper floor."
My resolve didn't change the situation. But I felt like my head had cleared up a bit. Even if we escaped, if the city fell to Zeno and his forces, we wouldn't be able to save the others. First, we had to overcome this crisis. If we could do that, we could establish a base for a counterattack and assess the situation around us. We headed for the kitchen.