kscans

Chapter 247 - The Siege of Miglutt and the Operation to Rescue Augustus

The cell wasn't locked. Augustus was suspended from a beam in the ceiling by chains, but the shackles on his wrists were wooden.

"Hey, it's really impossible to escape carrying this guy,"

Riley muttered, looking at Augustus as he collapsed to the floor after she shattered his shackles with her claws. I walked over to him and checked his condition. He, too, was an elf with handsome features, but now his face was swollen and red, a mere shadow of his former self. His dignified presence from just a few days ago was gone. Suppressing the swirl of emotions rising within me, I knelt down to examine him more closely. I reached for his body, but he was so covered in wounds I didn't know where to touch. I finally settled on his shoulder and gave it a shake, but there was no response. I held my hand to his mouth. He was breathing, however faintly. I stood up.

"Don't worry, I have a plan."

"Huh? If we carry him, we'll be surrounded before we even get out of this basement."

"Famu came up with a plan for situations just like this."

"That dog-eared girl? She seems like the type to act on emotion. Didn't strike me as a brilliant strategist..."

Riley mused, tilting her head. I thought Famu would probably resent hearing that from her of all people, but I kept my mouth shut.

"Even if we do get out, where do we go? This man will die if we leave him."

"He'll be fine. The problem is which way to go. To the north, there's a church with a priestess named Elisha. But in this situation, I don't even know what's become of the church. To the south, there's Kalpana. I don't know much about her 'Sun Maiden' class, but I'm sure some of the Wandering People she leads can use healing magic. The only problem is they're outside the city. It'll be difficult to get that far."

"Again with the women!"

Riley spat.

As we went upstairs, the soldiers looked at us with surprised expressions.

"Let us through,"

came Riley's muffled voice from within Irysalie's robes.

"But..."

one of the soldiers hesitated.

"We're performing a public execution of this man. We'll draw out the members of the Star Union family who have gone into hiding."

Riley said, just as we had rehearsed.

"But, Lady Irysalie... you seem... vacant, and isn't that blood flowing from your mouth?"

"N-No, this is wine... Yeah! The sweet wine of victory! I'm just a little drunk."

A dark-skinned arm, a stark contrast to her own skin tone, emerged from the sleeve of the robe and wiped at her mouth. But it couldn't wipe away the blood properly, just smearing it and making her expression even more grotesque. Irysalie was wearing a robe that covered her entire body. Its back was unnaturally bulky. The reason for this was Riley, who was hiding inside and manipulating Irysalie's body.

"L-Lady Irysalie! Your arm... what happened to it?"

"It's the... the alcohol. It always happens when I drink!"

"And your mouth..."

"Shut up! Why do you keep pestering me?!"

Riley, with her face buried in the robe, had no idea what was going on around her. I needed to give her some kind of signal. I quickly shifted Augustus on my back and wiped the blood from Irysalie's mouth with the hem of my clothes. But fresh blood immediately trickled down again. Irysalie was dead. There was nothing I could do.

"We're in a hurry! Open the damn door!"

Riley shouted, unable to hide her irritation. The soldiers, mistaking her voice for Irysalie's, hastily opened the door.

"Damn, I heard the door open, but I still have no idea what's going on..."

Riley whispered.

"Irysalie seems pretty drunk. It's alright. I'll support you, so just walk straight."

I placed my hand on her waist and guided Riley forward. Before us, the brilliant light of the sun spread out.

Once outside the government building, we stood on the hill and looked down at the city. Just like before, flames were rising from various places. Just then, we heard an explosion, and a new plume of smoke billowed up. I couldn't tell how the battle was going, but it was clear that the street fighting was continuing. The southern part of the city was the territory of the dog-eared One-Land family. The fact that fires were breaking out there meant that Maryanne's forces hadn't been able to turn the tide. The straight road leading down from the staircase was clear of fighting. But using that road would be like announcing our location to the enemy. We couldn't risk a gamble on whether we'd be found by One-Land soldiers or Leafkraut soldiers.

"Let's head for the church..."

I said to Riley.

"The church and the guild... are already... under the control... of the Air-Ally family and Clovis's men..."

The voice didn't come from inside the robe; it sounded like Irysalie herself was speaking.

"Riley, you're getting pretty good at that!"

"It wasn't me, you idiot! I told you, I can't see what's happening. Stop with the stupid jokes!"

Hearing Riley's muffled voice, I hesitantly looked at Irysalie's face. Her golden eyes moved and looked down at me.

"Y-You! You were dead!"

I recoiled and shouted. I had confirmed in the dungeon that her breathing had completely stopped. We had been intimate. Because of that, I couldn't help but feel a sense of guilt and sentimentality. But she was one of the leaders of this rebellion. What she had done to Augustus and the other family heads was unforgivable.

"To think you'd make such a face for me..."

I didn't know how she interpreted my confusion, but Irysalie's lips curved into a faint smile.

"...Just because I died doesn't mean all my functions have ceased. I told you, didn't I? This magic of Zeno's activates upon the target's death and continues to move any functioning parts until all functions have ceased..."

I had thought Zeno's magic was only cast on the low-ranking soldiers. I couldn't hide my surprise that it had also been cast on someone of Irysalie's status.

"So you are dead..."

The immortal soldiers I had seen so far seemed to be moving according to pre-programmed orders, regardless of their own will. But she was speaking, trying to convey her own intentions.

"That's a difficult question... But this consciousness of mine will also, soon..."

Irysalie's eyelids began to droop.

"Hang in there. If I cast healing magic on you in this state, will you come back to life?"

"Hey, are you trying to save this woman?! We should just dump her somewhere and be done with it!"

It was Riley who spoke instead of Irysalie.

"More importantly, pick a destination already. How long are you going to dither?!"

The northern part of the city, where the church was located, was the territory of the human Air-Ally family. According to Irysalie's information, with the help of Clovis's men, they had taken control of the guild and Crystal Garden, Miglutt's largest entertainment district, where adventurers' inns were concentrated. Rinko and Airi, the two transmigrators summoned by the goddess Lushe, were also at my house before the fighting started, but they should have returned there by now. I didn't know their fate. The church was also already under the control of the Air-Ally family, and they had left a small garrison there before moving on to attack the western part of the city, the territory of the dwarf Sky-Lot family. Currently, the One-Land family and the Leafkraut family were fighting in the south, and the Sky-Lot family and the Air-Ally family were fighting in the west. It might have been because we avoided the main streets, but we managed to reach a spot with a view of the church without getting caught up in the fighting.

"This is bad, Irysalie's face won't work on the Air-Ally family members..."

I had thought that Riley and I could break through a small number of guards. But there were more than ten soldiers there. They were wearing the same full plate mail as the Leafkraut soldiers who had been guarding the government building, but they wore cloaks with a different crest. We had undone the two-person charade, and now Riley was supporting Irysalie. And I was carrying Augustus on my back. We were in no condition to fight.

"Riley, you can stop here. I'll take these two into the church myself."

"Huh? Don't be ridiculous. You think I can leave you here after coming this far? Tell me the plan!"

Riley stared intently at my face. The idea of one of us acting as a decoy to draw the soldiers away crossed my mind, but I shook my head to dismiss it.

"Sorry, but there is no plan. I just want to get these two treated and check if Elisha is safe."

"Hey, are you still planning to save this woman?"

I just gave a weak smile, then shifted Augustus on my back and started walking towards the church entrance. Riley tried to stop me by grabbing my shoulder, but eventually, she sighed and helped Irysalie along, following me. The guards immediately noticed us and surrounded us, their spear tips pointed at us.

"The church is sealed."

"...I see. But they're seriously injured. Please, can't you just let the two of them in?"

I glanced at Augustus and Irysalie.

"Sorry, but our orders are to kill any adventurers we find..."

"Why are you attacking the guild and adventurers?"

"A part of the Star Union family, along with the One-Land and Sky-Lot families, have betrayed the empire and are trying to sell out Miglutt to the Demon Kingdom. And in the midst of all that, some guy claiming to be an otherworld hero is acting as a spy and inciting it. So, we either have to kill the adventurers or quarantine them."

"Quarantine them where?"

"In the Crystal Palace. They'll stay in the dungeon until the rebellion is suppressed."

I frowned at the soldier's words. They probably hadn't been told the true purpose of this civil war. Fortunately, they didn't react to Augustus's or Irysalie's faces. They were probably low-ranking and didn't know who they were. Not that it mattered much with Augustus, whose face was swollen beyond recognition. No matter what I said, it was unlikely they would listen. None of them seemed to have the authority to let us into the church. But since soldiers had already moved in behind us, there was no way to retreat.

"Then why are you surrounding the church?"

"Simple. We're waiting for people like you to show up so we can finish you off."

Just as a soldier lowered his stance to thrust his spear, the church doors opened.

"Stop it! What do you think you're doing?"

a dignified voice rang out. Elisha stood there, dressed in her priestess robes.

"Don't interfere with what we do outside the church. Stay out of it!"

one of the soldiers replied.

"Saving the injured and the sick is the sacred mission bestowed upon us by the gods. If you intend to obstruct that, then from this day forward, the church will close its doors to any plea for salvation you may make. The same will apply should the members of the Air-Ally family suffer from injury or illness."

At Elisha's words, the soldiers' spear tips wavered. I couldn't see their expressions through their iron masks, but it was clear they were shaken.

"But we have a mission of our own. Even for you, we cannot let them pass!"

one of the soldiers shouted. Elisha nodded at his words.

"Then, how about I come to you?"

Without waiting for a reply, she started walking.

Elisha looked at me intently and bowed her head.

"I am so sorry. The Crystal Core you entrusted to me was taken by Clovis."

"...More importantly, I'm just glad you're safe."

I stroked her cheek, and she pressed it against my hand, looking tickled. The soft sensation spread across my palm.

"To think the day would come when you would say something like that to me..."

Elisha smiled. Beside us, Riley cleared her throat.

"While you two are doing that, these two are going to die. Well, one of them is already dead..."

We laid them side by side on the ground. Elisha gasped when she saw their faces.

"I heard they were hunting otherworld heroes and was worried about you, but Lord Augustus, Lady Irysalie... What in the world is happening in the city?"

She had been forced to seal the church during the sudden attack and had no idea what was going on in the city. I briefly explained the situation while she cast healing magic on the two of them. Riley looked up at the sky, and I followed her gaze. The sun was low on the horizon, and the western sky was beginning to glow red. The sounds of battle continued in the distance. I wondered what kind of endgame Zeno Leafkraut and Istvan Air-Ally had in mind. It was clearly a plan for a decisive, short battle, but how long did they expect it to last? Were they prepared for a night battle after sunset? And could Maryanne fight them off?

"...Lord Augustus will be fine,"

Elisha said, breaking through my thoughts. I looked at Augustus's face. The swelling had gone down considerably, but he showed no signs of waking up. He didn't look like he was in good condition at all. Noticing my concern, Elisha bowed her head.

"If we were inside the church, I could use the power of miracles..."

Elisha's gaze fell on Irysalie.

"I don't understand this person. I've closed the wound that went through her from her back to her chest, but..."

As if to embody Elisha's confusion, Irysalie blinked her eyes and sat up. Riley and I watched, holding our breath.

"It seems I've incurred a debt..."

I didn't understand what she meant by 'debt', but I felt an eerie presence from her and was about to step back when she grabbed my wrist. The coldness of her touch sent a shiver down my spine. Even though I had asked her to, I was amazed that Riley had been able to support her and bring her this far. Just then, with a click, the bracelet came off. I shook her hand off and rubbed my wrist, trying to shake off the creepy sensation.

"Isn't that a bit harsh?"

Irysalie laughed. I couldn't answer and remained silent. Elisha looked at me.

"You've also taken considerable damage. Would you let me heal you?"

"No... I'm fine. More importantly, we need to leave this place immediately."

"Where to?"

Elisha asked.

"I want to check on the Mateo Trading Company, then meet up with the Wandering People. We can let Augustus rest there."

Now that Irysalie had removed the bracelet, I didn't have to worry about being tracked and bringing trouble to them. I didn't know what I could do, but whether it was to find Levante or just get a better grasp of the situation, I felt like leaving the city for a bit would give me a better perspective. I thought I had suggested the best course of action, but Riley sighed.

"Off to the next woman's place, are we? You really are a busy man..."

Beside her, Elisha nodded.

"Very well. Let's go at once."

"You're coming too? You'll be caught up in the fighting."

"Mash, I have decided to devote myself to you, as sent by Lady Laciel. Whatever happens, that will not change."

Elisha clasped her hands tightly to her chest.