Chapter 377 - A One-Sided Suppression Battle
As long as the target doesn't die, it’s not a problem. Even if they’re barely breathing, as long as they’re alive, it counts.
Being able to choose such an aggressive method was likely something only we, as villains with high-level recovery methods, could do.
Plus, even if we made a mistake and went too far, we were thick-skinned enough to just feign ignorance or double down. The mental leeway that provided was surely an element of our strength that couldn't be ignored.
"Ready, Yukari?"
"No problem. Heidi, keep a wide watch. Don't let anyone get close."
"Understood. If it’s a suspicious person, I’ll neutralize them. If it’s an unrelated third party, I’ll drive them off, but I’ll let you know if it’s the authorities."
"I’ll leave it to you."
It was all about willpower. Thanks to the talisman over my left eye, the pain and mana disruption were much better.
Still, it was far from perfect. If I looked at my state objectively, I was in a situation where I’d normally collapse right now, even with the talisman. I was only standing through sheer willpower.
The pain in my left eye and the mana disruption were particularly bad. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't even be able to use magic at all.
But I could do it. I could act tough and say I was capable. My spirit was fired up to defeat the enemy.
"...Phew."
Placing an entire underground area within my domain. This wasn't a technique that could be done just because you had a lot of mana. It was an extremely advanced and delicate magic skill.
No matter how much mana you had, an individual couldn't cover such a wide area. Even with the [Exterior] spell, that didn't change. You needed the skill to eliminate as much waste as possible and expand and control a minimum amount of mana.
Being able to keep such a wide area under magical control simultaneously for a long time required sensing and manipulation skills, backed by a massive amount of mana. It was no exaggeration to call it a pinnacle of magic.
Right now, I couldn't even manage half of my usual power. If I didn't have the talisman, I’d manage ten percent at best, or maybe twenty percent if I really pushed it for a short time.
Even with only that much power, I could still get things done if I was powerful enough to begin with. I had that power.
"Alright, let's go."
I closed my eyes to focus and began.
It took a bit of time, whereas normally I’d finish in the blink of an eye.
While controlling my disrupted mana, I moved closer to the image I had in mind. I spread my mana and uncovered the enemy hideout and secret passage.
The area where the mana was blocked wasn't very wide, and the largest space was likely the hideout itself. The passage from the basement entrance to that hideout was a short, straight line.
There were two other narrow spaces. Since they weren't built to block mana partway through, they had to be escape routes. I found them already.
One of the escape routes ended in the park about dozens of meters away, likely a decoy. The other was the real one, continuing much deeper and further underground. It went so far that I couldn't tell where it ended without further investigation.
The chance of more enemies being further down the hidden passage seemed low. Since the passage didn't seem very well-built, it was likely meant only for emergencies. Like an emergency exit. I didn't sense anyone in the passage.
I couldn't tell what was happening inside the hideout because of its mana-blocking structure, but I knew most of everything else. No need for more detection.
I opened my right eye and nodded to Gradena, who was in front of me.
"Alright, you lot! We’re moving the moment Yukari uses her magic. How we’re attacking... well, you decide."
"Me? Understood! In that case, let’s start by destroying the traps—"
As long as the escape routes were blocked, we could be as aggressive as we wanted. It didn't matter how we did it as long as we got results.
The member who was told to come up with the plan understood that, so they quickly came up with a rough idea. We all stepped out of the shed and began.
"Alright, let's not give them any chance to resist. Move!"
"Yeah."
Maintaining the magic was already a significant burden for me.
I gave a short reply and simultaneously used my thorn magic to destroy the two escape routes. I didn't do it particularly flamboyantly, but I wasn't being subtle about it either. Whether the enemy noticed my magic or not was a fifty-fifty chance. It didn't really matter anyway.
"Open sesame!"
A powerful spell was used to open the entrance to the basement. If opening it normally might trigger a trap, then just blowing it up with a bang would destroy the traps along with it.
No one cared about the shed anymore; the mindset was that fine details didn't matter.
A massive flaming arrow appeared in the air and struck with extreme speed. The shed was turned into debris in an instant, and the arrow blew open the basement entrance with a loud explosion. Simultaneously, a wind spell blew away the debris.
Fortunately, this was a secluded part of a wide park. We didn't need to worry about disturbing the neighbors.
"It’s just a dirty underground passage anyway, let's wash it out!"
"Understood!"
"I don't want to get dirty when we go in!"
"Flood it, flood it!"
Three members ran to the basement entrance and cast their magic. A massive amount of magical water poured into the gaping hole like a violent waterfall.
As the water poured in, one person manipulated the massive volume. A mage skilled in water manipulation would literally wash the place clean.
If you don't try to be subtle, you can neutralize most traps just by flooding and churning the area with water. It was a crude but effective method. The water eventually filled the passage all the way to the hideout door and started overflowing.
"My turn!"
Gradena replaced the members who had used the water magic. Looking delighted, Gradena struck the water's surface with a fist cloaked in lightning.
A powerful electric shock rampaged through the water in the underground passage, destroying all the traps that had likely been laid out.
Because of the mana-blocking structure, we could only imagine what the interior was like. But given how quickly the water had filled the area, there was definitely a door.
The passage from the basement entrance to the hideout door was surely filled with water. If there was no door at the entrance to the hideout, the Badu-Lot members inside would have been struck by electricity while drowning in the massive amount of water.
Gradena’s electricity was powerful. I’d intended to capture them alive, but it might turn out to be a total massacre.
I didn't mean to kill them, but if it happened, it happened. The plan was made with that possibility in mind. It’s always best to finish the enemy before they can take any action.
The worst-case scenario was them escaping, and the next worst was them using a desperate trump card. Preventing those was the priority, and capturing them alive came after.
"Hurry, hurry! Don't let those Badu-Lot scum do anything!"
Things proceeded exactly according to the initial plan.
Once the lightning had burned through the passage and the magical water was dispelled, next was wind. While blowing away any poison gas that might have been generated, they used wind magic to scan the interior and found the dead-end that was likely the door, as expected.
The door hadn't been destroyed by Gradena’s lightning, so it seemed to be quite durable, but it had surely been weakened.
"I’m going in for the next one!"
"Let's keep it going!"
"Alright!"
"I’ll finish this!"
Three people, including the one who had used the flaming arrow earlier, went down into the basement and fired off magic one after another.
The first strike was to destroy the door, and the next was to suppress the interior of the hideout. The four of them were back on the ground before they even saw the results.
Almost simultaneously, there was a muffled sound of destruction, followed by several consecutive explosions.
If that didn't get results, we were prepared to repeat it over and over, but it seemed to have worked.
The sound of the door breaking alone must have ruined the hearing of anyone inside. They might have taken physical damage too. And then we’d thrown in several stun-grenade spells.
A light and sound attack that normal magical defenses can't block is extremely troublesome. If caught by surprise, even we wouldn't be able to avoid being neutralized by such a vicious spell, so it was unthinkable that they were unharmed.
It wasn't over. The members who went down again used another stun-grenade spell and also threw in a magic potion that created non-lethal gas.
Through an excessively persistent attack aimed at neutralization, we would overcome the enemy's countermeasures and resolve.
"That should be enough. You lot, leave them half-dead for now. If you find them, kick them and stab them before sealing their magic. Move in!"
"Yeah!"
How the people in the basement were doing was just a guess. They surely weren't unharmed, but we weren't going to be careless.
Even if they somehow dealt with what we’d just done, next was a furious raid. A head-on fight was what we did best, and if Gradena and the others were serious, they could beat them before they could do anything. At the very least, given the situation where it was unlikely the enemy was undamaged, we couldn't imagine losing.
It didn't matter if they were lying there near death as expected. They might be playing dead, and they were scum who wouldn't hesitate to self-destruct.
Without question, making them half-dead quickly was the best way to reduce the chance of any problems.
"...Phew."
I wiped away the sweat that appeared even when I was still and took a deep breath.
Even though the pain had lessened thanks to the talisman, the pain in my left eye, my physical condition, and the mana disruption were still there. Honestly, I wanted to be in bed right now.
I hoped the church could heal this curse, but it was still infuriating to have to rely on a church I didn't want to get involved with.
As far as our investigation went, the church was an organization of good. So the cost for healing would likely just be a reasonable donation, even if it was high.
But I still felt like I was earning a favor, which I hated. Well, it wasn't even certain the curse could be healed yet...
"This is Heidi. Five vehicles are approaching. I can't see who’s in them, but I think their destination is where you are. What should we do?"
With that many people, it wouldn't be local residents.
"This is Shino-ue. We were pretty flashy, so it’s only natural for someone to report us, even if we are deep in the park. Are they the Blue Coats? If it’s Thompson's guys, it’ll be easy to deal with."
"No, they’re not Blue Coat vehicles... Ah, I see Moore. It’s the Berleeza Intelligence Department."
They were moving incredibly fast... but I guess that was expected for the Intelligence Department. After all, they’d been watching us at that noble’s villa where we got caught in a trap. It was only natural for them to continue monitoring us, and once we’d found the real Badu-Lot hideout, of course they’d come running.
Still, those Intelligence guys had said they were unable to move.
"Did something happen?"
"Gradena, is it over? The Berleeza Intelligence Department is here."
The basement was built to block mana. Gradena, who had just returned from the basement, hadn't heard the transmission between Heidi and me.
"I see. They have great timing. We’ve just finished restraining the people inside, but the Intelligence guys will surely tell us to hand them over immediately. We won't have time for an interrogation."
So we caught them. They were experts at hiding and using nasty curses, but this is what happens once you corner them.
"...Hmm, fine. Interrogation is their specialty anyway; we’ll let them handle the trouble and just take the information. I’ll make this a very expensive favor. By the way, how many Badu-Lot members were there?"
"There were five, but two of them were already dead. It looked like they’d died a bit ago rather than from our attack."
A bit ago... the timing was likely when they’d used that large-scale spell on me. It’s possible they’d traded their lives to cast it. It was that powerful a spell.
"I see. Having three alive is good enough."
"They’re only just barely alive, but they’ll be able to talk once we heal them a bit. It’d be the worst if they self-destructed again, so we’ve stripped them too. There shouldn't be any problems handing them over."
While waiting for the approaching vehicles, everyone returned from the basement with the half-dead, naked men.
So these were the guys. They looked like pathetic excuses for men. To think these guys had used all those traps and cast that massive spell. You really can't judge people by their looks.
"We still have a little time."
I thought it was fine to just get the information from the Intelligence Department later, but I wanted to ask about the curse magic myself.
I chose one of them at random and healed him just enough so he could talk.
The thin man who regained consciousness looked at me with hatred in his pale face. Given his weak breathing, he wouldn't have the leeway for any idle talk.
"Listen. Don't go against my words. First, answer within two seconds. If you don't, I’ll punch you."
One, two.
He completely ignored me. What a guy.
I punched him as I’d declared, and I felt several of his teeth break. He spat out blood along with his white teeth.
I was incredibly irritated. He should be grateful I didn't just kill him.
"I’ll ask again. Your answer?"
One, two.
He’s no good. Even if he can't talk, he can still move his head. His lack of response was a final act of defiance.
I punched him once more and gave up on further questions. I might actually kill him if I kept going.
As expected, interrogation was better left to experts, and it required time, tools, and equipment. Especially when the opponent was a professional with some resolve.
Moore and the other Intelligence members arrived at this spot in the woods, where only the charred remains of the shed were left. Heidi and the others had all vanished, as they didn't want to show themselves to anyone else.
"...Are these the Badu-Lot members?"
Moore, who had stepped forward, said as he looked at the battered, naked men without expression.
I understood the feeling. One usually imagines a certain kind of eerie quality in members of a dark organization. Seeing the real thing can be disappointing because they look surprisingly normal.
'Are these really the guys?' you think.
"If they aren't, then we’re total fools."
"Well, you did a great job. This will settle some of our problems. Hey, take them away."
The people who seemed to be his subordinates led away the Badu-Lot members, who were bound by wires.
"Once the scene investigation and interrogation are done, I’ll contact you. I’m sure we’ll need your help again."
Moore and the other Intelligence members were pretending to be calm, but they couldn't completely hide their excitement. The capture of Badu-Lot was likely that big of a deal.
And it should be; the capture of the mysterious dark organization Badu-Lot was a massive achievement. They would be living evidence that could take down even the nobles who were involved.
Even though we’d fought them for our own reasons, we were handing over the credit. It was going to be a huge favor.
"I’m sure you know, but we have no intention of following anyone’s lead. Whether we listen to your requests depends on the profit we gain."
"Yes, don't worry about that. By the way, what happened to that?"
He seemed concerned about my eyepatched left eye. A sharp-eyed Intelligence member would have noticed that I was sweating profusely and was severely exhausted.
He might have imagined I’d been exhausted from the fight with Badu-Lot, but there was no reason not to heal an injury. They surely knew that we had plenty of high-tier recovery potions.
"...It’s the effect of a curse, a large-scale one. Make sure you get the clues to heal it out of them."
"I see. We intend to use this opportunity to fully grasp the details of their curses. Wait for the investigation results; I’m sure you’ll be satisfied."
Investigating the mysterious magic would be very useful for the future. I had high expectations for the information.
But even if the details were revealed, I had a feeling the curse wouldn't be healed just like that. After all, it was a curse, and a large-scale one at that.
If the spell was meant to be fatal, they wouldn't have woven a way to lift it into the magic itself. I’d have to find another way to save myself.
"Tch, to think I’d see the day when I have to rely on a church..."
Watching Moore and his team leave, I felt a deep irritation toward the curse that seemed to be eroding not just my body but my very heart.